Slipping Through my Fingers
by SkyBlue1309
Summary: A retelling of FSOG giving Ana a slightly different back story. They meet the same way but enter into a friends with benefits relationship instead of Ana signing his contract. See how Ana and Christian take a different path to love. *I don't own FSOG*
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everyone! New story for you guys. My first time in the FSOG fandom but I've been reading these fics for a while. Good news is that this story has almost entirely been written! So no worries about it going unfinished. It will be! I only have a few chapters left. This fic will get updated like once or twice a week but I'm not going to keep myself to any schedule, so sometimes it might even be more than that. It will go out as I edit it, but there will also be some time since I still need to write the last bit. I am also working on my first novel so this is more of a side project to that. But the one thing to take out of all of this is that it will get done!**

 **Hope you all enjoy the story and enjoy my new take on FSOG.**

* * *

"Where are you?" Kate asked in way of greeting as soon as Ana picked up the phone.

"I just got to campus," Ana closed her car door of her beetle, giving it an extra shove when it stuck. She needed her rust bucket to survive until she could afford something else otherwise she would become a slave to public transport. "I have class in an hour and was going to go to do some work for the paper."

It was going to be the last edition that Kate and she would ever run since they would be graduating in two short weeks. Ana was planning on going in this morning to start on the layout. Every other article was in right now except for the one that Kate was working on, the pinnacle of their journey at WSU and it had a space of honor right on the front page. Ana and Kate were going to go out with a bang. The only student newspaper ever able to successfully secure an interview with one of the world's top CEO', a local celebrity—well as local as Seattle was from Portland. He was also notorious for not giving out interviews and Kate scoring this… well it would certainly make it tough for their successors to even come close to competing.

"Aren't you supposed to be on the road?" The interview wasn't until three and she only had a four-hour drive but Kate is never one to leave things to last minute and chance.

"I need your help, Ana." Kate dissolved into a heave of coughing fits. Ana paused on the front steps of the journalism building. Now that she wasn't moving she could hear the rasp in Kate's voice. "I'm sick."

The world stopped. "Kate, what the fuck, the interview is today!" Ana moved to the side, back turned to anyone else that was entering the building. There weren't too many due to the early hour and how close they were to finals. Classes were still in session but everyone knew they were optional, most students choosing to stay home and study there.

"I know. I just woke up." Ana frowned, knowing that Kate was a lot worse off than she probably sounded if she just woke up because that meant she had slept through her alarm, something Ana didn't even think was possible for Kate to do. "I need you to come to my house to get all my material so you can do the interview. You can even drive my car. I filled up the tank and everything, it's just waiting to be taken to Seattle."

"Why aren't you asking Jessica?" Ana asked even though she was already making her way back to her car. Kate lived close to campus but time was already of the essence.

Jessica was their other reporter and one of the more capable ones on staff.

"Do you really want this article to go into the hands of someone who's not a senior? This is our departing statement. Our goodbye to WSU and the paper and a way to tell them good luck on ever being as good as us. You think they're going to be able to top an interview with Christian Grey? Yeah right! This is all us Ana and I'm not about to give it to a junior." Kate coughed. "Please tell me you're on your way."

"Of course I am." Ana slipped into her car. "I'll see you soon. Have everything ready to go for me."

"It already is."

They both hung up and Ana started her car.

* * *

"This is everything you're going to need," Kate said, shoving a stack of papers into Ana's hands. "Make sure that you record it with your phone but you have to ask, you can't just do it without his permission or knowledge."

"I have done this before," Ana replied, taking the papers from her hand. "Everything will be fine; this isn't my first rodeo."

Kate breathed in through her mouth, the snot in her nose making anything else impossible. "I hate you so much right now."

Ana smirked, folding the papers into her chest. "I love you so much right now."

Kate growled. Ana's smirk grew wider.

Ana's giant crush on Christian Grey was a well-known fact in the newspaper staff and Kate had heard the most of it, especially after Kate was given the go-head for the interview. Ana's ideas had gotten more and more outrageous on ways to get herself included into the interview or secret ways that Kate could videotape the whole thing.

"You're going to be professional right?"

"Am I ever not?"

Kate sighed but let it go knowing that Ana was right. It was the reason that Kate was still letting Ana do this despite her crush. They both knew Ana's crush was mainly for amusement than an actual belief anything could possibly happen between them—and the fact that the man was ridiculously hot. Ana wasn't conducting the interview with the secret goal of gaining a boyfriend or possible engagement ring, but to make sure that they would have a fantastic article. Kate and Ana had worked tirelessly to give the WSU paper the reputation it had today and Ana wouldn't throw it all away on the small chance to get a date.

"Okay, get going. I'm going to be wallowing here in misery over the fact that my interview just got stolen. Keep me up to date with texts!"

"Of course," Ana replied, keeping the rest of her jokes to herself. She knew that Kate was seriously bummed out about getting sick now and could only imagine what it was like. This interview was all Kate. She was the one that had persevered with GEH to make this possible and now she couldn't even be there to the end. "I'll make sure to bring everything straight back to you so you can start writing it up."

Kate nodded. "Looks like you'll be doing a heavier editing than you expected."

"This whole thing is different than either one of us expected but it's still going to be fantastic and that's why we make a great team."

"Yeah, yeah. Get out of here. I can't have you being late and leaving a bad impression. I did call ahead so they know you're coming through but still give both of our names just in case."

"Sounds good," Ana opened the door. "I'll see you later."

"Break a leg!" Kate's words were cut off by the doors closing.

Ana quickly made it out to Kate's car that was sitting tight and ready in the guest spot. It wasn't normally parked here, but Kate often complained how far away parking was and while the residents could get fined for using the guest spot, Kate had obviously chosen her priority. Soon Ana was on the road with all of her material in the passenger seat next to her.

She would be skipping commute traffic and still be arriving with plenty of time to stop at a café, grab a tea and study up. She knew most of what the questions were going to entail, familiar with Kate's articles and having done enough interviews of her own.

Ana was the editor in chief of the WSU paper having taken it over from Kate when she had transferred in from her community college. Money had always been tight and Ana wasn't the type of person that wanted to be working for the first ten years of her life to pay off a student loan. By going to the community college, scoring enough scholarships, working part time during the school year and full time during the summer had scored her an exit ticket with almost no debt.

She wouldn't regret it though she would always wonder a little bit how her life would have been different if she had gone straight to WSU freshman year. She'd been accepted then, one of her few allowances was letting herself apply despite knowing she wouldn't be going either way.

Ana had met Kate during her first month on campus when she had finally hunted down the professor in charge of the school newspaper. Kate had already been the top dog, doing almost everything herself. She wanted it to look great on her resume, but it had to be great in the first place for her to accomplish that. Ana had been looking for the same thing though her focus had been the editing side of the paper and not so much the journalism as was Kate's focus. After a trial run the rest was history.

Ana started taking over more and more of editing allowing Kate to step back further and further until she could focus on finding incredible stories without having to worry about the rest of the paper floundering. The rest of the staff had slowly stepped up when they realized that they had become a legitimate school paper that other students were actually reading. Even Ana sometimes did an article or two of her own, though was less than pleased when it was because of a lazy staff member and not simply because she wanted to.

 **You better be there.**

Ana smirked down at Kate's message.

 **Just got here. Cool your britches. I'm heading to a café to study up now.**

 **Like you need to study.**

That got a full laugh from Ana. It was true that she certainly wouldn't be studying much about who Christian Grey was, but more of the focus for this article. This interview was the highlight of Kate and Ana's years together at the WSU Newspaper and Ana would never mess up her and Kate's career chances because of a silly crush. She would squish down her feelings and fangirl after the interview.

* * *

Ana gaped up at the building in front of her. She hadn't been able to park in front and thus had plenty of time to admire it as she approached. She had known the building was amazing, but hadn't even realized until she could compare it to the rest of the ones on the block. GEH was the top dog and if you didn't know it you certainly did as soon as you saw it.

She had known Christian Grey was rich, it was one of the only reasons he had made it onto her radar. Not because she only stalked rich and famous people but because she wasn't as up to date as Kate when it came to the news. Most of her information actually came from editing her own newspaper and whatever Kate told her.

Christian however, was certainly hard to miss despite being known for his low profile. It was simply next to impossible for someone with his level of success and looks to maintain the level of privacy that he did, yet somehow, he managed it. It did mean that when he was photographed somewhere or showed up at some type of event, everyone heard about it.

Even Ana.

The crush had started out simple—if it could even be called that. She hadn't even known she had one at the time. She saw a picture of him and wanted to know who he was. After a little bit of internet research she had a name and company behind it. Slowly she had gained more and more information about the man, even put him on google alerts to make sure she found out anything new as soon as it came out.

Soon enough it simply became a joke amongst Ana and all her friends that she was going to know anything regarding Christian Grey. She would wax poetic during meetings until they all told her to stop talking and was the first to point out one of the various charity that GEH donated to. And now Ana was one of the few people in the world who would have to privilege to actually meet their celebrity crush.

She was smoothly ushered through the front desk and following desk of another lavish office until she stood face to door with Christian Grey's office. The man himself the door she stood in front of. Ana forced herself to breath. This was going to be the most important interview of Ana's life. She was reminded why she wanted to be an editor and not a journalist. Her hands were shaking and she really hoped the Christian Grey wouldn't see them.

"You can go in now," the assistant said to Ana the second time. She'd introduced herself as Andrea when Ana had walked in and was probably thinking Ana was an idiot.

Ana gave her a shaky smile and turned back to the door. Andrea might face billionaires every single day but Christian Grey would be her first. She schooled her features and opened the door.

The office was just as opulent and tastefully decorated as the rest of the building, giving a whole new description to the word luxury. It was large with a wooden desk close to the window with seating in front of it for guests. Luxurious, modern and cold were the first words Ana would use to describe it. Here Christian Grey meant business.

The man himself stood in front of his floor to ceiling windows, turning when she walked in and offering a small smile that barely reached his eyes. He was just as handsome in person as he was in pictures. Ana pressed her hands into the papers she was holding, really hoping he couldn't tell how nervous she was but already knowing the futility of the action. The only way she could describe the way Christian Grey was looking at her was dismissive.

"Ms. Steele," Christian Grey said, holding out his hand, his face taking on an impassive quality that left Ana having no idea what the man was thinking. This man could have been a poker player if running a company hadn't worked out.

"Mr. Grey," Ana said, his hand was warm in her own. She reminded herself to give the correct amount of pressure. Not too little but not too much. Just enough to make her presence known.

Mr. Grey didn't react either way.

At least she'd got the name right. She'd been quick to note how everyone else talked about the big boss, only using his last name. She couldn't remember the last time she'd addressed anyone so formally besides her professors on the first day of school. They'd all quickly reassured their students to simply call them by their first names. The English department at WSU was extremely close and informal.

"Please, take a seat." Mr. Grey motioned towards the black leather couch, taking a seat opposite in one of the equally stiff looking arm chairs.

"I wanted to start by saying thank you so much for this opportunity," Ana began, laying out her papers in front of her and sitting back with her pad of paper and pen. She waved her phone. "Would you mind if I record this?"

A beep interrupted before Mr. Grey could say anything. He stood and made his way to his desk, pressing a button on his phone. Andrea's voice filled the office. "Mr. Grey. Your next appointment is in fifteen minutes in conference room A."

"Very good, Andrea." He punched a button and silence settled around the room once again, Mr. Grey staying perched against his desk, making it clear he would not be taking a seat again. He waved for Ana to go on. "Start asking your questions, I don't have much time."

"…And the recording?"

"That's fine."

Ana bit her lip, refusing to ask why he'd accepted in the first place but knowing that even fifteen minutes with the man was more than anyone else had ever scored. She wished that Kate had never gotten sick and she could have stayed in her blissful crush filled bubble of admiring Christian Grey from afar.

Ana placed her phone down on the table after clicking on the recording app and cleared her throat. "To what do you owe your success?"

Mr. Grey looked less than pleased. "Really?"

"It's a leading question," Ana said before she could catch herself. She cringed and cleared her throat, wishing she could take back her defensive response. This interview was going all stages of wrong. She looked down at her notepad. She didn't need it. She did need the respite from Mr. Grey's gaze. It felt like the man never blinked. "Okay, next question then—"

"No," Mr. Grey interrupted, looking as interested as Ana could tell. She had never met someone so unreadable. "What were you saying?"

Ana hesitated for a moment before finally replying. "It's a leading question." She waited to see how Christian would react, continuing at his look of interest. "A feeler question, you could call it. All interviews start with something like that to get a feel for the type of interview that is about to be led. To let me know if this is going to be a chatty one, more like a simple conversation that I will then go back and pick out the pieces of information I need or if I will need to be guiding it more. Asking all of the questions and pushing us in the direction of where I want to take it."

"Where would you think this interview is going?" Mr. Grey's eyes were still indiscernible.

Ana shifted in her seat, crossing her legs. She regretted the action immediately, wishing that she had just put both feet on the ground but now she was self-conscious and forced herself to stay as she was. "A guiding interview."

"Why is that?"

"Multiple things." There was no point in her stopping now. Either this interview would work out or not, but not answering his questions was the last thing she needed to do. "The most obvious factor was your assistant announcing your next appointment. You didn't set out a lot of time for this interview wanting to make it clear to me that I was on a time crunch—which I am now wasting," Ana waved her hand in the air with a self-deprecating smile. "Also, your response to my question was very telling and you haven't been very talkative for most of this, so…" Ana trailed off, wondering if she'd gone a bit too far at the end but otherwise not caring. Mr. Grey didn't seem like the kind of man that was going to get his feelings hurt over lil' ole Ana. He ran a multi-billion-dollar company. About to graduate undergrads were least likely his worries.

Then Mr. Grey did the absolute last thing that Ana expected.

He leaned back over his desk and pressed a button on his phone.

Andrea's voice filled the office once again. "Yes, Mr. Grey?"

"Andrea, cancel my next appointment."

Ana gaped, eyes going from Christian's phone to Christian. "What? No, you don't have to do that—that wasn't what I meant."

"Relax, Ms. Steele. Believe it or not, I am allowed to manage my own schedule, despite what others might think." He offered her a smile, it was smaller than the one he had given her upon greeting but much more authentic. Ana was practically gaping as Christian Grey took his original seat. "Now, where were we?"

Ana's responding smile was tentative, only growing bigger when she realized that Mr. Grey's offer was serious.

The rest of her questions went smoothly, Ana elaborating on some while skipping straight over some of the ones that Kate had written down that she deemed unimportant for the way that the interview was going.

"You're a real life superhero Mr. Grey. Saving the world one company at a time." Ana said with a fond smile as she put her pencil down and closed her notebook on top of it.

She'd be finding a café nearby as soon as this was over to go over them and make sure it was all legible for Kate; along with footnotes of how she thought it should be written. Kate and her hadn't done this often, but enough times to know how to make it the least painful for both of them so neither felt like they were getting their toes stepped on.

"That's the first time anyone's ever called me a superhero." Mr. Grey said with a considering gaze.

He'd loosened up during the interview. It wasn't much, only a slight relaxation of his body and let his facial expressions opening up a bit more. If it was anyone else, Ana would have still been quick to critique their closed off-ness but Ana had watched all the interviews Christian Grey had ever given and examined all of his photos. This was the most open that Ana had ever seen him and she was giddy from the knowledge that he had opened up to her of all people. That she, Anastasia Steele, had been able to get the ice king himself, Christian Grey, to loosen up.

"I'm sure it's been said about you many times, just probably not to your face."

"What does that mean?"

"You can be a bit intimidating… not everyone would probably want to use such fluffy words around you."

"But you do?"

"What can I say? I'm too awed by being in your presence to be watching my brain to mouth filter." Ana leaned over and shut off the recording. "I can't thank you enough for this opportunity, Mr. Grey. You have no idea how much you've made mine and Kate's day—uh, Ms. Kavanagh's."

"The tenacious Ms. Kavanagh, daughter of Eamon Kavanagh, who will be joining Kavanagh Media upon her graduation of WSU."

"Uh," Ana blanched. She chuckled awkwardly. "Yeah. You certainly do your research. I didn't realize you looked up the people that interviewed you. Or were supposed to."

"It pays to do so, especially when it comes to relatively unknowns requesting an interview and not taking no for an answer." It was only because of the last half hour that Ana knew Christian wasn't mad, simply stating a fact that bore little consequence to him, if any.

"Ah, yeah. Guess me showing up wasn't that great of a surprise then. Kate does apologize. She ended up getting sick and I'm her replacement. It was a last minute switch though we did make sure to inform your assistant."

Mr. Grey waved away Ana's concern. "You wouldn't have been allowed in the front door if anyone had noticed anything of conflict."

Ana nodded her head up and down, the feeling of awkwardness returning.

"What will you be doing after graduation, Ms. Steele? Perhaps, joining your friend at Kavanagh's Media."

"Oh, no." Ana barked a laugh. "I prefer to be much more behind the scenes. I've applied for several internships at local publishing houses here in Seattle."

Mr. Grey tilted his head to the side, a movement that Ana had learned meant interest, despite how miniscule the action was. Mr. Grey made all the right actions, they were just much more controlled and refined than anyone Ana had ever met before. "You won't be continuing on as a journalist? Scoring an interview with me is no easy feat and will get you noticed by many different companies even if it was only for your school paper."

"That was Kate's idea," Ana nodded. "She'll be the one writing our article not me. I'm just the editor in chief but this article was Kate's and my baby. We couldn't let it go to one of the underclassmen."

Mr. Grey didn't say anything for a moment, eyes trained on Ana's face but not looking directly at her eyes. He cleared his throat, grey eyes meeting hers once again. "An interview with Christian Grey will certainly be hard to follow up."

Ana couldn't stop the smile from reaching her lips as Mr. Grey repeated Ana's exact same thoughts.

"Perhaps I should hire you for my PR team, you certainly know a thing or two about good interviewing skills. I wouldn't have to be so worried about what statements they were going to release."

"I hardly doubt that your PR team isn't up to standards," Ana replied offhandedly.

"But not for you?"

"Uh—no! That's not—I, uh, didn't realize that was a job offer?" Ana had no idea what had happened to this interview. She cringed immediately. Of course that hadn't been a job offer and now she was making an even bigger fool of herself than she had been at the beginning.

"You wouldn't be interested in an internship at GEH? Even one of our short term ones would set you apart from any other candidates wherever else you chose to apply in the future."

Ana opened and closed her mouth. "I—I—thank you for the offer but I already applied at the other places and while the opportunity here would be fantastic it doesn't quite fit into the field that I'm looking for." Ana nodded to herself. That sounded professional enough for this strange scenario that she found herself in.

Mr. Grey considered her, hand resting against his chin, one finger stroking his lips in a very distracting manner. "Whoever you end up working for will be incredibly lucky."

Ana smiled her thanks and waited for Christian to start the closing statement.

"This must be a stressful time for you as you get closer to all of your finals and wrapping up the end of your year. Have you been having lots of celebrations with your friends?"

Ana blinked when she realized that Christian wasn't shooing her out the door. "It's definitely a crazy time," she replied. "Finals. Saying goodbye. Knowing that I won't see some of these people ever again. Are you still in touch from anyone from college? I know you didn't graduate, but that doesn't mean you didn't make any friends. I only have one friend from my high school and kept none from my community college. Just the way it worked out." She lifted one shoulder in a shrug. "They were good friends but we were just friends of convenience. Not that anyone likes to hear that. I'm pretty sure I know the ones that I'll stay in contact with and the ones I won't."

"That's something I haven't thought about in a while. I haven't kept in touch with anyone from my college days," Mr. Grey said after a moment of thought. "I was too focused on getting my company up and running I suppose."

Ana smirked. "I suppose that gives you a good excuse."

The phone beeped. "Mr. Grey, your next appointment is here."

Mr. Grey as already moving towards the phone by the time that Andrea had finished. "Cancel it, Andrea."

"Oh, no!" Ana said, leaping to her feet and scrambling for the rest of her things. "Really, you don't need to do that."

Mr. Grey stared at her for a long moment before nodding his head. Ana breathed a sigh of relief once she was no longer in his direct line of sight. Intimidating was definitely the word she would use to describe him. He pressed the phone button. "I'll be out in a moment, Andrea."

Ana stared at him a moment longer before she realized that he was waiting for her to go. "Oh, um," she moved all of her things into one arm and stuck out her hand again, "thank you again for the interview. We'll make sure to send a copy out to you as soon as the story is finished which should be right around commencement."

Christian nodded, taking Ana's hand. Was it her imagination or did he hold it a moment longer than he needed to? Finally, he released it. "I'm certain that I'll see you at your graduation."

"Umm. Well, I mean yeah. I'll definitely see you." Ana fought the cringe. Of course he would see her. He was handing out diplomas. Ana was already moving to the door, knowing that her face was bright red.

"Here," a hand popped in front of her holding a white card.

Ana took it tentatively realizing that it was a business card. Christian Grey's to be exact. She stared at it in amazement then up at Christian.

"I'll make sure to keep an eye out for a copy of that paper. I look forward to reading the article." He held open the door for Ana.

It took her a moment to finally walk through with a farewell that consisted of a wave, Ana not knowing what words to even say anymore. She wanted to question him on the card that he handed her but didn't know what to even ask. Instead she found herself fumbling to tuck it in with the rest of her papers as she walked towards the elevators, all too aware of Christian Grey on her heels. That entire situation had gone a lot more differently than Ana had ever expected.

The elevator opened and she walked in. Her breath caught when she turned and realized that Mr. Grey was standing right in front of her.

"Anastasia."

"Christian."

The doors closed.

She breathed a sigh of relief as soon as the metal doors were between her and the rest of the executive level. She pulled out her phone and immediately dialed Kate's number, grateful that the elevator wouldn't be stopping at any other floor for the ride. She was riding in Mr. Grey's personal elevator and that meant that no would else would be able to get on until it was at its destination.

"Tell me it went well," were the first words out of Kate's mouth when she picked up the phone.

She was sounding worse than she had been when Ana first saw her this morning, her voice even hoarser. Ana grimaced when she heard Kate blow her nose. Ana had never been a fan of snot. The worst time of the year for her was when cold season hit and all of her classmates walked around wiping their nose with their sleeves and only tissues if she was lucky.

"I think it's safe to say that you are going to have a _fantastic_ article."

Kate breathed a sigh of relief. "Ana, you are a freaking light saver. I can't believe that you were able to do it. I mean I can, but you know what I mean. It all went well and he answered all of your questions? How long did he give you or did he just make you wait forever? I knew that he wasn't going to give long but it's been over an hour. You couldn't have been with him that whole time."

Ana almost felt smug as she reported that she did in fact spend it with him the whole time.

"You suck!" Kate said with a groan. "Still crushing on him?"

"I think my crush just got even bigger. You're never going to hear the end of it."

Kate groaned and hung up, only making Ana's answering laugh grow even louder.

* * *

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	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, followed and favorited! It means so much to me. Here's chapter 2. I feel I'll have 3 out between Monday and Wednesday. Depends on how much editing I actually want to do with it. There's things that I could change but might just leave as is...**

 **Forgot to say this last time, but this is unbeta'ed. All mistakes are mine though I try to catch any grammar and typos but hey, no one's perfect and it's not like I know all the rules. Also, don't own FSOG. I've always wondered about why us fanfic authors say this? Like is it a requirement that I didn't read or something? Like we all know that I'm not E.L. James and that I'm not getting money for this... but whatever. It's in my summary anyways so this is the only time I'll say it.**

* * *

"I'm leaving Kate!" Ana shouted from the front door.

She had spent the night so that they could have a small celebration the night before just between the two of them over the success of their Christian Grey article. To say that it had gone well would be an understatement. Their school paper itself had been growing more popular due to Kate and Ana's hard work, but this was the first time that they had sold out and been forced to order more. Ana had even seen people who clearly did not belong on campus coming just for the article; the papers website itself having thousands more hits than any other article before.

Kate and Ana had definitely gained attention with the help of that article. Ana had gotten a call from two of the publishing houses that she'd applied to and had interviews the following week lined up, only find out that they'd decided just to hire her and were calling with a job offer. Ana knew that Christian Grey's name held weight, but nothing like what a simple article with his name attached could do. Kate and Ana deserved a celebration.

"Okay, okay," Kate rushed into the room, eyes darting around as she tried to find all of her things. "Go. Go say hi to your dad for me."

"Remember that you're supposed to be there even earlier than me."

"I know. I'll be there soon." Kate finally lifted her head and gave Ana an amused and exasperated smile. Kate was almost always late to everything, a direct contrast to Ana who was always on time.

They had spent the night out at a bar with their newspaper peers since no one had to be up early the next day, but it didn't mean anything for the constant late types like Kate. It was times like these that Ana was grateful they didn't live together and therefore not expected to arrive together. Any time an event they were both required to attent came about, it would be Ana showing up first, Kate following soon after with a bright smile, charm on full throttle, letting Ana fade into the background and leave the introductions to her friends while Ana chatted with their already known connections. Kate was for new connections and Ana to maintain their old ones. It was a system that they had perfected.

"Don't be late," Ana said.

"I won't. I won't!" she said to Ana's retreating back in reply to Ana's knowing look.

"Bye," Ana called as she closed the door, leaving her friend to her fate. As long as she was there for her speech everything would be fine. It wasn't like they could withhold her diploma for showing up late.

Ana made her way quickly to school, choosing to walk and leave her car parked at Kate's. If she drove it she'd probably end up walking just as far if not more and have to deal with the frustration of finding a parking spot in the first place. The graduation today was big, made even bigger by the fact that Christian Grey was going to be there. She hoped she'd be able to see him again but the chances were higher that Kate would since she'd also be giving a speech. At least she was seated pretty close to the stage and would have an excellent view.

"Ms. Steele."

Ana spun, taking a step back when she spotted a man in a black suit standing a few feet away from her. If him knowing her name hadn't set her off, then the suit certainly did. Despite there being many others around him dressed similarly, he wore it quite differently. "Umm… yes?"

"My name is Taylor," the man said, shifting almost imperceptibly to make it clear that he wasn't trying to intimidate her. Ana relaxed at the gesture, her curiosity now rising to the forefront. "I work with Mr. Grey." He certainly had all of Ana's attention now. "He'd like to speak with you, if you have a moment. He understands this is a very busy time for you."

"Um," Ana glanced towards the stairs that she'd been about to walk up. Her dad was waiting for her but she hadn't made a specific promise to meet him before commencement began. She nodded and gestured to Taylor to lead the way. She'd be getting dinner with her dad afterwards and she would not be able to survive the curiosity that had erupted at Christian Grey's name. If she didn't go now all she'd be wanting to know is why he was asking for her and if she'd missed a once in a life time opportunity. "Where are we going?"

"Mr. Grey wanted to speak with you in private. He's waiting in the car." Taylor said, motioning to a silver grey Audi that Ana had noticed as she walked by, but not thought about twice. She wondered if Christian had been watching her this whole time.

"No, that'll be fine." A bit weird, but she could understand Mr. Grey's reluctance to step outside knowing his preference for all things private. He was probably going to be swamped the second he got out of the car. His presence here was going to be one of the rare public appearances he makes within a year.

Taylor nodded and opened the back door. Ana ducked her head to confirm that it was the man of the hour before sliding into the car, the car door closing behind her with a soft thud. Ana stared at Christian Grey feeling like a deer in headlights despite knowing exactly what she was walking into. "Um. Hi."

"Hello Anastasia," Christian Grey said with a small, knowing smile.

"Um, Ana's fine. All my friends call me Ana."

Christian nodded, a move that normally signaled acquiescence but gave Ana the impression of placation. "How are you?"

"I'm good, I'm really good. Happy to graduate." Ana replied, her words true although overused over the past few days from well-wishers asking her the same question. "Thanks again for the interview. I don't know if you saw the article, but it was received really well and we could not have done it without you."

"I was unaware that you were not writing the article." Christian's face had returned to what Ana was quickly realizing to be his standard facial expression that left her with exactly zero knowledge of what he was feeling.

She had seen it in practically ever photo that the internet had of him, she just hadn't put together that the reason it was the expression they most often captured was because it was the expression he most often made. It did nothing to capture the intensity of his eyes. Eyes that left her feeling naked in front of him, all of her secrets laid bare. If this was how he was in the board room it was no surprise that he was so successful. She felt like folding and he hadn't even asked her for anything.

Ana froze. "Oh, I thought I told you. Yeah, Kate was writing it, I was just doing the interview because she got sick… It was supposed to be all Kate, but yeah—sick. So you got me." She added, feeling lame but like she also needed to say something else in the face of Christian's impassive stare.

"The article was well written," Christian finally allowed.

Ana breathed out a sigh of relief. "It worked out really well. Opened up a lot of doors for us that we didn't even realized could be opened. You are now looking at a successfully employed college graduate. Well, almost graduate."

Christian frowned. "Where will you be working?"

"Seattle Publishing. They offered me a job just last week after I came in for an interview. They did admit that while I had looked promising, it wasn't until they saw the article that they really took me seriously." It had been a matter of major accomplishment for Ana and further illustrated how far the article and gone. She'd of course mentioned that she was working at the school paper and had some articles prepared for the interview, but not the Christian Grey one because of when it was published. They had found it all on their own. Three job offers, with only one that she'd actually interviewed at was not bad when all Ana did was interview the man.

"I was hoping you would put through your application at GEH. I informed Andrea to keep an eye out for it."

"Oh, uh, sorry." Ana gulped. She hadn't thought twice about his offer assuming it was simply him being polite. Suddenly this encounter was making a lot more sense. "It's nothing personal, I've just been very interested in the publishing industry, not that I don't think that there wouldn't be something I'd like at GEH—just not… what I want. Do you have a publishing industry?"

"We do not but we're thinking of acquiring one." Christian gave her a pointed look, letting her know that it was more than obvious she was changing the subject. "Maybe we'll look into Seattle Publishing."

Ana laughed. "So you'll become my boss either way. Guess you can say I worked for you the whole time."

Christian looked away, a flash of disappointment crossing his face much to Ana's confusion. Wasn't that what he wanted? It was a bit confusing in itself that she was being head hunted by the CEO of GEH. She was a college graduate with an impressive resume, though not anything extreme compared to others that must be applying at GEH.

"When are you moving to Seattle?"

"I'll be moving this weekend actually. My dad's in town and he's going to help me move my stuff. I don't have too much."

"Will you be moving in with Kate?"

Ana laughed. "No. We will never live together. We're good friends and the only way it's going to stay that way is as long as we never live together. You know how that goes. Have you ever lived with anyone?"

"I had a roommate back in college when I lived in the dorms for the first year," Christian said after a moments consideration, his face relaxing minutely as he thought back to his college days.

"I never had the dorm experience. I went to a JC my first two years and lived from home, though I guess you could say I still got the college experience when I was here at WSU. I lived in campus housing my first year and my roommates definitely liked to throw a party."

Christian chuckled. "I ended up in the party dorms as well when I first landed at Harvard. That's all that our building was known for. I moved out within the first week and got an apartment off campus. My brother would never let me hear the end of it."

Ana laughed herself, enjoying the smile that was on Christian's face. He should smile more. His eyes still looked piercing but this time it contained a welcoming warmth that only made her want to smile with him.

"I did the same. I stayed with them for the first semester while desperately trying to find someone that would live with me. Worked out okay. I ended up rooming with a stranger who went to the local community college but we were both looking for a place to live and came to the basic understanding that we weren't going to be best friends but two people living in an apartment together. Not going to the same school certainly helped keep that distance. We could go a full week without even seeing each other." Ana laughed at the memory. "We were lucky to find a two-bedroom place that was so cheap and close enough to both of our campuses."

"Who will you be living with once you're in Seattle?"

"No one." Ana threw her hands in the air and wiggled her fingers around. "It will be my first time living on my own and I could not be more happy about it. You live on your own right?" She'd been saving all year so that she could afford a place by herself. It was small, but it served its purpose and most importantly, it was all hers.

"I do." Christian answered.

Ana froze when she realized what she had unintentionally implied. She'd made sure to steer away from relationships during her interview, even though some of Kate's questions had been more than direct in that regards. Ana had felt no reason to even touch on the subject given his reaction in other interviews and the absolute lack of context to asking it. The second the words were out of her mouth about Christian's rooming situation she was ready for him to kick her out the door.

"I look forward to the solo life," Ana soldiered forward, trying to put her prompting question to the way side. "No more making sure my roommate cleans or having no idea what I just stepped in when I walk into the kitchen," Ana shuddered. "And now that I have a job with the salary I want I don't have to worry about not being able to afford the place. I had my eye on this one for so long, I didn't even think it was going to be available by the time that I would be moving and then there was the fact of money." Ana sighed. "Millennial struggles." Ana stared at Christian who stared back, until all the silence hanging in the air became restricting. Ana searched her mind for questions, jumping back to their previous conversation. "Do you ever regret not finishing college?"

The question caught Christian by surprise, his eyes widening. "No. Maybe the experience but no." He tilted his head to the side, a thoughtful expression appearing on his face. "I haven't thought about it in a while."

"Would you recommend people following your path?" She was slipping back into interviewing mode but couldn't even be bothered. These were things she wanted to know and would never have another opportunity.

"What?" Christian asked, "Dropping out of college?"

Ana nodded. So many entrepreneurs talked about how school didn't help them and going to university was pointless, the only ones who were there were the people that just wanted to become sheep. Yet, she'd never seen Christian give an interview anywhere similar.

"No, I don't. Everything we do what we do for a reason and college was no different. Even though I dropped out after a year I still learned invaluable things that year, even though they weren't all from my professors. Most of college is about making connections and gaining life experience you wouldn't find anywhere else. There's also the simple fact that as much as people don't want to admit it, not everyone's meant to be the next big CEO."

"Saying that everyone's gonna be sheep?" Ana asked with a teasing smile.

Christian returned it. "I'm saying that people need a drive to follow through that most people lack but still expect for everything to just happen."

"And you had this drive?"

"I wouldn't be one of the world's top CEO without it." Christian chuckled suddenly. "I think you're going into the wrong career."

It took Ana a moment to realize he was teasing but it couldn't stop the flush from reaching her cheeks. "Ugh, sorry. Didn't mean to go full interview mode on you. It's just… you're fascinating."

"That is not a compliment that I have received before."

Ana snorted imagining all sorts of compliments Christian was most likely to get, most having to do with his physical assets. Being pretty helped you get places in the world, but there was also a fine line between pretty so therefore respected and so pretty everyone only gawks. Christian waddled the line not because he didn't belong in the latter, but because he demanded respect too firmly to allow himself to stay there.

"I myself find you incredibly fascinating."

Ana's eyes widened. "What? Why?" That was also a compliment that Ana herself had never received.

"I've never met anyone like you before." Ana tilted her head to the side and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, blushing even more when she realized that Christian had watched the entire movement. "How come you've decided to go into publishing when you would have such a successful career as an interviewer."

"Your bias because you liked my style."

"I have a hard time believing that you have ever had a bad interview."

"Well you better believe it," Ana replied. "You, thankfully, were fine with me being straight forward to, but many like to forget that they're even being interviewed or lead it exactly how they want. Or flirt the entire time and just generally talk about things I don't want to talk about. I'll leave the interviewing to Kate."

"I take it you're not much of a people person?"

"I like people fine. I just like talking about things I actually want to talk about."

Christian chuckled, shifting forward a bit in his seat. It wasn't until he did that that Ana realized she herself had been leaning forward as well.

She cleared her throat and moved back, noting what looked like disappointment in Christian's eyes, but decided that she'd only imagined it. He wore a dark grey shirt with an even darker blazer and it highlighted just about everything for Christian. His figure, his eyes, the cut of his jaw. Ana had been doing her best to avoid gawking and cursed her slip up.

"As an editor you won't have much of a choice over what you are reading," Christian said, seeming oblivious to Ana's reaction, "especially in an entry level position."

"The difference between reading and talking about what you don't like is the that when you're reading, you can put it down and no one can be offended because the author isn't in the same room as you."

Christian continued to stare at her, the small smile that he'd had retreating somewhere during Ana's speech leaving him blank faced as he watched her. Ana grew flustered, unsure if she'd said something that offended him but not knowing what. Mercurial was certainly a word to describe Christian Grey. She fingered the handle wondering if she could just duck out and run to campus. It's not like she'd ever see the guy again after today.

"Where are you moving to in Seattle?"

This was a question that Ana could answer. She released the door handle. "It's an apartment complex close to Pike's market. They only opened last year and I was able to get one of the last studio apartments available."

"That's not too far," Christian said to himself.

Ana wondered from where exactly considering it was nowhere close to GEH office building though it wouldn't be too far from where Ana would be working. She could even walk if she wanted though it would probably take her over a half hour and not something she wanted to try in the temperamental weather of Seattle.

"What are you doing this evening?" Christian asked suddenly, attention snapping back to Ana.

Ana's eyes widened. That sounded a lot like a lead up to a date but there was no way that Christian Grey would be asking her out to dinner. "I'll be going to dinner with my dad but I'm going out with my friends tonight at Izzy's Bar if you'd like to join us." It was a local pub that Ana liked to frequent and while would be a hot spot tonight, it was a bit further off the beaten path than where most other post-grads would be going tonight.

Christian considered Ana, his fingers laced together in front of him. "I just might do that."

Ana couldn't stop herself from gawking at Christian's reply, "Oh. Um. That's good. Really good." She glanced out the window, seeing a lot more students in graduation gown moving by than she had earlier. "I have to get going, my dad's waiting for me." She was now in the in between time of too late to meet her dad but too early to line up. Hopefully some of her friends would be there already. Ana slipped out of the car, barely waiting for Christian's acknowledgment or bid of farewell.

She couldn't stop the red that was on her face, only hoped that it was gone by the time that she reached any friends. She knew that Christian was only being polite by accepting her invitation and wouldn't actually be there tonight, but hated how much those words had put hope in her before reality caught up.

It wasn't until Ana was lining up with the other students that she realized Christian had never given her a reason for wanting to talk to her.

* * *

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	3. Chapter 3

**As usual thanks for all the reviews, favs and follows! Hope you all enjoy the update :)**

 **And fyi, this story is between T and M on the rating but I'm so bad at choosing I put the higher one. So you know not to expect big sexy times. Not the best at writing smut, so there won't be any.**

* * *

"Oh. My. God." Ana stared as she watched none other than Christian Grey make his way through the crowded bar.

"Is that Christian Grey?" Kate hissed into her ear beside her. All of them were well past the point of sober and Ana would definitely have brushed off her Christian sighting if Kate hadn't seen him too. "How is he here?"

"I might have… I might have invited him." Ana could not believe that she was actually watching Christian Grey walk through the crowded room, eyes scanning. Once they met hers he gave a small nod, walk gaining intention as he started to push through the crowd in Ana's direction.

Kate's grip on her shoulder tightened, nails digging in. Ana winced and tried to wiggle away to no avail. "You invited Christian Grey out with us tonight and didn't think to mention it? When did you even see him?"

"I didn't think he would actually accept the invite!"

"Ana," Kate gripped her shoulders in both hands, turning her so they were standing eye to eye, a lot closer than normal so they could hear each other over the music. "Any time you invite someone you tell me, even if you don't think they're coming. Especially if that someone is Christian Grey!" She was shaking Ana at this point, releasing her suddenly when Christian finally reached them. "Mr. Grey, hi! We didn't expect to see you here tonight."

"You came," Ana blurted out, her filter severely hindered with the amount of alcohol in her system.

Christian focused on her, all but ignoring Kate. "Ana, Ms. Kavanagh. This is my brother, Elliot."

It wasn't until that moment that Ana saw the attractive blond standing behind Christian. She'd have instantly pegged him for a frat boy if Christian Grey hadn't introduced him. She vaguely remembered seeing him in family pictures she'd found online but her focus had always been on finding Christian; scanning any other member just enough to make sure that it wasn't him.

Kate immediately zeroed in on him. Frat boy had always been her type and Ana knew that they would be going home together. That didn't mean she hadn't forgotten her manners. "I'm glad you were able to make it." Ana had to hide her smirk. Leave it to Kate to make it seem like his presence was totally planned. "I wanted to speak with you earlier but you were busy. I can't thank you enough for the opportunity you gave us and WSU with your interview."

"The pleasure was mine," Christian replied, barely sparing Kate a glance. "Could I get you a drink?"

Kate was quick to pick up on it, sending a pointed look Ana's way that grew even more pointed at Christian's offer.

Elliot laughed from where he stood beside Christian. "Leave it to my brother to be a complete ass. Could I get you ladies a drink?" Christian scowled as both Ana and Kate replied in the affirmative, giving him their orders. "Come on Christian. You'll help me carry them."

Christian's scowl only grew though he did trail after his brother, Ana and Kate sharing an amused look as they left. They were certainly brothers.

"I didn't realize that Christian had a brother."

"Did you do any research for the interview?" Ana asked.

"Of course I did. Not that I really had to do much since you told me practically everything I needed to know anyways." Ana smiled helplessly. "Apparently you didn't think his hot older brother was worth mentioning."

"I didn't tell you everything," Ana grumbled. "He could be younger for all you know."

Kate smirked. "Trust me. He's the older brother."

"What does that even mean?"

Kate never got a chance to reply, Christian and Elliot appearing at their sides once again, Christian passing Ana her beer and taking a pull of his own. They'd seemed to come to some agreement while away, Christian much calmer, he even had a small smile on his lips as he greeted Ana again. Elliot had already pulled Kate on to the dance floor, leaving their full drinks behind for Ana and Christian to watch.

"I didn't think you'd actually come," Ana said once they were alone.

"You did invite me."

"Yeah, but I didn't think you'd take me up on it."

"Do you often invite people with the intention of them not accepting?"

Ana opened and closed her mouth knowing that if she continued this thread of conversation she would only sound ruder. "How was the rest of your night?"

"It was good." Christian moved closer to her, "But it's only getting better."

Ana blushed but relaxed at the same time. He was flirting. That was familiar territory and he was not someone that she minded being flirted with.

"How was dinner with your father?"

"It was really good," Ana shouted, grinning in embarrassment when Christian moved even closer, his ear practically brushing against her lips to be heard. Her lips tingled at the contact. He smelt delicious, an aftershave that she'd noticed in his car and office but hadn't been able to figure out the source until that moment. "Did you have dinner with deans of the school?" It wasn't common knowledge, but Ana and Kate had made sure to find out everything they could for when he was there.

Christian nodded.

Ana picked up her bottle, freezing when Christian caught her wrist in a light grip. Her eyes met his. "Don't drink anymore tonight."

Ana stared at him, his eyes just as piercing as usual but this time holding a question. It wasn't about the drink. It was about the promise that the night could bring. She had never thought she'd be in a situation like this before, had never been a very spontaneous person but she couldn't let herself miss this opportunity.

Ana placed her drink down.

* * *

Ana woke slowly, stretching out along the smooth sheets. It took her a moment longer than she'd like to admit to realize she wasn't at home. She owned a twin size bed and had been waiting for the day that she could finally get a queen. That had been her first purchase for her new apartment. Ana frowned, fingers trailing further and further to where she should have felt the end of her bed. Her eyes shot open. She was definitely not in her new apartment. Even in her dreams she would not be in such a lavish place.

Memories of the evening before flooded back to her. She had spent the rest of the evening dancing with Christian, sometimes with Kate and Elliot beside them. The two of them had only had water the rest of the night, ignoring Kate and Elliot's encouragement to drink with them, but also receiving a knowing and approving look from Kate every time they refused. She'd made sure to keep them teasing and to always make it clear to Ana that there was truly no pressure.

The night had been fantastic.

He had taken her back to his hotel, a determined look on his face that had only grown until they were in the hotel elevator. Next thing she knew he was pressing her against the wall, his lips upon hers. They'd made their way into his room—which she had briefly noted was the penthouse, why it surprised her she did not know—and to his bed before Ana could even think to slow things down. Quickly she didn't want to, each time he touched her left her body aching for more of anything that he would give her.

Ana stroked the white linens, noting that she was alone in the room and couldn't hear sound coming from outside the room, another perk of the penthouse. It wasn't just one room but multiple.

Ana slid out of the sheets when it became clear that she was alone and had been for some time. She got dressed slowly, savoring the feelings of aching soreness that she felt with each movement. It had been her first time and it was safe to say that it was going to go down in history as one of the best first time experiences anyone had ever had. She had orgasmed and hadn't bled, Christian being an incredibly generous lover, understanding that she wasn't as experienced at him though there was no way he had known how truly unexperienced she was. She'd made sure to keep that little tidbit to herself, knowing that any mood would be killed the second it was out in the open.

Ana wasn't surprised to have woken up alone. She'd known from the moment that Christian had led her out of the bar the evening before that it was just for the night. Men like Christian Grey had people in and out of his life and sheets all the time and Ana wasn't about to delude herself into thinking that she was different. She was grateful that Christian had left her alone this morning, making it more than clear that he expected her to leave and didn't leave either one of them dancing around the morning after conversation that came from a one-night stand.

She relieved herself in the bathroom, sweeping her hair into a ballerina bun once she was done. She wiped off smudged makeup, leaving herself fresh faced, wearing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. She was grateful that she'd stuck to her jeans the night before. Her top was a bit more than for average day wear but her jacket would cover it up nicely. Ana smiled. First one-night stand and she wouldn't even have to worry about the walk of shame.

With a final look around the bedroom and apartment she left the hotel with a smile on her face. She didn't think she could have planned a better entrance into the adult world if she tried. Newly employed college graduate and freshly deflowered virgin. Christian Grey had changed her world in more ways than he would ever know.

If only she knew how much she was going to change his world too.

* * *

"Ana, there's someone at the door for you," said Ana's dad, Ray.

"What?" Ana frowned at him. He was standing in the doorway of her bedroom where she'd been packing the remaining of her clothes. A lot of stuff had already been put into boxes, except for the things that were vital to Ana's survival but still needed to be packed up eventually. "Who?"

"Someone named Christian Grey," Ray tucked his gloves into the back of his jeans.

"What?" Ana repeated again, sure she had not heard him correct.

"Should I kick him out?" Ray asked with a frown, not having expected Ana's response.

"No, it's fine." Ana said hastily. She stood and brushed off her pants, moving by her dad. "I'm just going to talk to him for a bit. How many more boxes are there?"

"None. I was coming to talk to you. I'm going to head back to my hotel and I'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning."

"We're done already?" Ana paused in her kitchen, glancing around and finally noticing that all the boxes besides one were gone as Ray had promised. The place wasn't completely empty because it was just Ana moving out, not her roommate so the apartment still looked lived in, but definitely a lot sparser without Ana's things. She was sure it wouldn't be that way for long. There was already another person waiting to take Ana's room.

"I just moved the last of the boxes into the U-Haul."

"Wow. Okay. I guess we're done."

"Don't go making that face at me, Annie. I'm the one who had to watch his little girl graduate this week."

"Aw, Dad." Ana walked over and pulled him into a hug, Ray giving in easily. She always loved hugging her dad. She'd never met anyone who gave better hugs than him.

"I'm so proud of you Annie."

Ana squeezed him tighter. "Thank you."

Ray pulled away, holding Ana at arm's length. "I'm sorry that your mom couldn't make it but you know how it is and don't give it another minute's thought, you hear me."

Ana's mother was always a tough subject. She loved the woman but she'd never been very active in Ana's lifestyle despite being the only blood relative that she had left. Carla Adams nee Steele had married Ray Steele shortly after Ana had been born, a few months after Ana's birth father had died in action. Ray always liked to say that he fell in love with Ana the moment he saw her and knew that he couldn't let her go.

Ana always laughed but could never hide all the guilt that she had felt. Ray had loved Carla. Had loved her too, getting both of them only being a dream come true. But Carla was not the type of person to settle down and Ray was. The marriage had only lasted a few years before Carla had left him, the only good thing coming out of it being Ana's adoption. She'd started with visiting him every other weekend, then every other week. Soon she was seeing her mother less and less until Ray became the only parent she could ever rely on. She'd never known another father and never would.

"I hear you." Ana bit her lip, pulling herself out of Ray's arm. "I'll let you get going. I know that it's gonna be your bedtime soon."

Ray let out a hearty laugh at Ana's words, drawing a proud smile from her own. She always loved it when she could make her dad laugh. "Don't stay up too late yourself."

"I won't Dad." Ana followed Ray to the door, only remembering that Christian was waiting for her there when she spotted him hovering in the hallway. She waved goodbye to her dad who nodded as he passed Christian and got into his car.

The moving truck was parked and packed in the driveway. They had meant to take it up to Seattle, so Ana could get the keys and start moving in the big items but the process of getting the truck and moving her boxes had taken longer than expected, forcing them to move their plans to the following morning.

"Hey," Ana said quietly once her dad was gone. She leaned against the doorway, Christian taking that moment to walk up the rest of the steps towards her, a frown on his face. Ana frowned in return. Christian Grey showing up on her doorstep was the absolute last thing she expected. A thought occurred to her. "How'd you know where I live?"

"I ran a background check on you after you left my office. Your address was on it." He didn't even have the good grace to look guilty.

"Do you always look through the background checks personally?"

"Only when they run out of my bed before I can get their contact information from them."

Ana opened and closed her mouth not really knowing what to say. She'd thought that was exactly what he wanted but him showing up on her doorstep indicated otherwise.

"You never called me."

Now Ana was even more confused. "What are you talking about?"

"I gave you my number. I expected a call or at least a text but I got nothing."

"That was your personal number?" Ana gaped. "I didn't think you actually meant it."

"I would not have given you my card if I hadn't meant it."

"Yeah," Ana replied slowly, "I'm learning that now."

Christian and Ana continued to stare at one another, neither one of them saying a word until Ana remembers her manners. She motions towards the door, "do you want to come inside?"

Christian looked like he was about to refuse for a moment before nodding and making his way by her with a hesitation that she hadn't expected. It's not like it was his first time in a woman's home.

"Sorry about the mess," Ana said, looking around her own apartment. She'd known it was messy but now that she had a guest inside with her she saw that it was a disaster. Trash bags were in corners along with heaps of clothes that hadn't made the post-graduate cut and needed to be taken to donation. There was a reason that her roommate had decided to steer clear over these past few days.

"It's fine." Christian wandered around the living room, brushing his hand over the back of the couch as he passed by. He paused at a couple of photos on the walls that belonged to her roommate. Ana kept most of her personal mementoes in her bedroom though they were now safely packed away in the back of the U-Haul. "Who is this?"

"That's my roommate and his girlfriend," Ana said, stepping forward so she could look at the photo as well.

"I didn't realize you lived with a man." Christian almost sounded angry when he said it but he was facing away from her, not letting her see his expression.

"Do you have a problem with that?"

Christian turned and stared, Ana refusing to give to the heat behind his eyes. It had been hot the night before but now was just raising feelings of disbelief and anger. She knew this guy for five seconds and he was judging the fact that she lived with a guy like he had a right to. Christian broke the stare. "No."

He wandered away, moving in to what was clearly Ana's room, from the few boxes lying around it that housed the last things she would need this night before she could pack it away. They would be the last to be packed and first to be unpacked.

"Where did you go this morning?" Christian asked, standing in the doorway to her bedroom. It was painted a light blue, as it had been when Ana moved in, way too uncaring to change it to something more neutral.

"I left…" Ana trailed after him, biting her lip. "I didn't realize that you wanted me to stay."

"Don't do that." Christian's eyes had returned to her face, something that she was now realizing he did a lot. It left her simultaneously full of giddy and nervous butterflies, wanting to know what drew his eyes but also just wanting him to look away. To have the full attention of a man like Christian Grey was intimidating. It also felt like power.

"Do what?"

"Bite your lip." Christian reached out, tugging Ana's lower lip from her teeth. She hadn't even realized that she was biting it.

"Sorry," she breathed, mouth dropping open more when Christian didn't release her face, but cradled her head, one hand going to tuck some of her hair behind an ear.

His finger traced her lip, the movement so soft she almost didn't feel it. She did feel when he lowered his mouth, his lips pressing on to hers. Softly at first then harsher, hands tangling into her hair and forcing her lips open. The kiss went on for what felt like ages until they finally broke apart, both of them gasping. It wasn't until that moment that Ana realized she had fisted the bottom of Christian's shirt in her her hands. She released the material, raising her hands to grasp hire and pull Christian in for another kiss when suddenly he was pulling away.

"That shouldn't have happened."

Ana blinked, her hands dropping when Christian moved away. "What?" She hated how wavering her voice sound but made sure she didn't make another noise, her lips pressing firmly together. She ironically noted that at least she wasn't biting them anymore.

"I don't do the girlfriend thing."

"Umm… okay…"

"Like at all."

"Okay… I didn't really expect anything else." That was why she had left in the morning after all, thinking that she had gotten her moment with Christian Grey but she hadn't expected more. She knew where she stood and didn't need him to lay it out for her. "I'm okay with this," she took a step forward, raising her hands slowly until they were on Christian's forearms. Once she realized that he wasn't going to push her off she gave them a squeeze and stepped more into his space. "We don't need to label it. We just go with it as is, no pressure."

Ana had never thought that she would be the one to proposition Christian Grey with a no strings attached relationship, yet here she was and she couldn't feel any more excited. Christian Grey had come to _her_. Not anyone else. All of her dreams were coming true right now and she was more than fine with taking everything that he offered her. She wasn't about to expect anything; she knew that was foolish. She was the last type of person that Christian Grey would settle down with, but she could take one for the story books.

Christian's lips were tilted downwards but he didn't push her away. "I want to be incredibly clear that I do not do the girlfriend thing. Don't expect that from me."

Ana couldn't stop herself from rolling her eyes.

"Don't roll your eyes at me."

"Not your girlfriend, you can't tell me what to do," Ana grinned cheekily. "Not that I'd let you even if I were your girlfriend." She stood on her tip toes and moved her head up, a smirk sitting on her lips.

Christian finally sighed and pulled her into him but not before she saw the matching smirk on his own lips. He pulled back before their lips could make contact. "What time is your roommate coming back tonight?"

"He's not. He's staying with his girlfriend for the next few days."

"Good. Your moans are for my ears and my ears only." Christian pulled her in, wrapping her arms around his neck with careful purpose.

Ana swallowed hard, letting him guide her hands. He was very controlling in the bedroom, always directing her on how to lay or put her hands, but she wasn't about to complain since she didn't have any experience herself and he never left her hanging. Each one of Christian's actions were filled with purpose that more than satisfied both parties.

Ana was never left wanting.

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	4. Chapter 4

**So for any of you who check out my Facebook you know that I said I'd post this tomorrow. I lied. ;) Got too excited myself so it is coming out today. Hope you all enjoy the update.**

 **Slightly unrelated. I am working on my second draft of my original work that I plan on putting up on Amazon Nov/Dec and am looking for Beta Readers from anyone who is interested, so if you are... please PM me! This position is open to more than one person. Quick little note about beta readers for anyone who doesn't know. Beta readers are not your editors, so if you're interested but think your grammar sucks then don't worry! I just want people who like romance novels and since you're reading this fic I assume that's everyone... I'll be giving you questions before and after that are mainly just about the flow, like what parts did you get bored, or parts that you really loved. That type of thing.**

 **Otherwise, enjoy the update! And thanks for all the reviews! I read all of them and they mean so much to me that you guys are enjoying my story so much. :)**

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"Ana, these are for you," Arnold said in front of Ana's desk. She had met him only a few short hours ago, learning that he was the office manager, but only until the normal one came back from maternity leave.

She looked up and immediately stood when she saw the large bouquet of flowers in his arms, taking them with wide eyes. "Whoa, where did these come from?"

"First day on the job and you're already getting flowers," remarked Linette from Ana's other side, the words matching the teasing smile on her lips. She stood as well so that she could get a full look at the flowers.

Ana pulled the card from the sleeve and opened the envelope making sure that no one else could see it, already having a large suspicion of who these flowers were from. She smiled seeing Christian's signature at the bottom, it growing even more when she read his message instructing her to meet with him out front after work.

"Who is it from?" Linette asked, attempting to peek over Ana's shoulder.

"Just congratulation flowers from my dad." Ana tucked the card away.

"Uh huh," Linette responded knowingly but didn't prompt for more, going back to her desk.

Linette was also new but she had started about a month before Ana. She was a year older than Ana, only just now starting to work having spent the past year traveling around Europe before finally heading back to her home state of Washington. Both she and Ana were editor's assistants, but due to the limited office space, they, along with the other assistants shared one large desk in the middle of the room. Occasionally one would disappear into their editor's office but otherwise they would all stay together.

Ana had assumed that it would be slightly awkward, always in the center of everyone's line of sight, but everyone was doing their own things, the assistants were the last things on their mind. It did however, mean for limited privacy. It also helped and warm and welcoming everyone was, each doing their best to respect each other's privacy due to the lack of it.

Ana sat down behind her desk and pulled out her phone, pulling up Christian's contact, long saved but never used.

 _Thank you for the flowers_

 _I'm happy to hear you got them._

Ana smirked to herself. Christian always sounded so formal when she first started talking to him. It wasn't until the conversation had been going for a little while that he finally seemed to calm down and talk like a person who was actually 27 years old.

 _How did you know where I worked?_

It wasn't until Christian didn't reply right away that the message could have come across as a little tense as opposed to teasing like she'd intended. She spent the next hour nervously tapping her fingers on her desk until Linette snapped at her to stop. Her phone went off. She lunged for it.

 _It was in the background check._

Ana pursed her lips and waved her thumbs over the keyboard as she tried to figure out exactly what to say to that. The decision was taken out of her hands when Christian sent another message.

 _I'll pick you up in front ten minutes after you get off work. Don't be late._

 _Yes sir_

She didn't hear anything else from Christian until she got a text from him stating that he was outside. She hurriedly said goodbye to Linette who was waiting around for her Uber, her car having decided to break down that day and hurried out into the rain, umbrella at the ready. While it rained in Portland as well, Seattle had nothing on any other city she'd lived in. In Portland she could get away with leaving her umbrella at home, but now it was always glued to her hand.

She spotted Christian's black Audi, Taylor standing in front of it with an umbrella already at the ready. He smiled when he saw Ana approach, a small, polite one of pure professionalism. "Ms. Steele."

"Please, call me Ana."

"Mr. Grey is waiting for you Ms. Steele," Taylor replied without missing a beat.

Ana squinted at him for a moment before nodding a bit. "Alright Taylor."

"My apologies, Ms. Steele. Mr. Grey likes us to keep a certain level of professionalism with his…" Embarrassment flashed on Taylor's face, quickly schooled with his stoic professionalism. He opened the door and waved Ana forward.

That certainly had Ana's interest. She sent him a curious look as she passed by him and slipped into the back seat. It seemed that Ana wasn't Christian's first friends with benefit type relationship.

"Hey," Ana said, barely managing to get the umbrella closed before Taylor closed the door. She finally turned to face Christian who looked just as handsome as ever. His suit jacket had been left behind at some point leaving him in a dark grey shirt with the top button undone. She could see his jacket and suit on the seat next to him and wished that he'd waited for her to be able to take them off.

"Hello, Ms. Steele."

Taylor entered the front door and pulled into traffic.

"Wait, but my car is there." Ana said, head whipping between the parking garage and Christian.

"Taylor can come back and get it for you or he can drive you there after tonight."

Ana raised a brow. "Are you going to keep him on call?"

"He lives with me."

"I thought you said that you didn't have a roommate."

A small smile appeared on Christian's lips. "He's not my roommate. I have a staff apartment that he and my housekeeper share for when they are not on duty."

"Oh."

"Would you be against him bringing your car back to my apartment?"

Ana thought for a moment and shook her head. "You could have just told me where we were going and I could have met you there."

"I found myself wanting your company sooner than I anticipated," Christian slid closer to her, sliding their fingers together in a move that sent butterflies straight to Ana's stomach. She forced down the feeling but didn't release his hand. She loved it when Christian touched her. From purposeful to simple relaxed touches, the latter especially due to the scarcity of them.

It had been over a week since they'd said goodbye in Portland outside of her old apartment with the promise to meet up when Ana was settled into the city and her job. She would have thought she'd imagined the whole thing if a package with an NDA hadn't showed up at her doorstep almost as soon as she was gone.

"How was your first day at work?" Christian asked.

"It was good," Ana replied. She hadn't expected there to be much talking but she was just as willing to. Her plan for the evening was to get home and call one of her friends to talk about it with, but Christian was just as good. "Everyone there was so nice and I couldn't have asked for a better boss. Tiffany seems to be so down to earth and is more than willing to answer any questions that I ask."

"Sounds like a better boss than me."

It took Ana a moment to laugh, not expecting the dry joke from the man sitting next to her. "Are you saying that you're an impatient boss?"

"I'm saying that I can't stand incompetence."

Ana laughed. "So yes, you're saying that you're an impatient boss. How do you ever hire new people? What's your turnover rate?"

"GEH has one of the lowest turnover rates within that country," Christian informed Ana.

"Really?" She hadn't expected it to be atrocious, but he was a big business, and turnover happened to the best of them. She wondered how much they payed.

"Don't look so surprised, we are number one for a reason. Regretting saying no to my offer?"

"Somehow I think I got a much better one instead."

Christian smiled but didn't refute, his hand squeezing hers. "The benefit of being on top is that I don't have to train anyone."

"Not anymore."

"Not anymore," Christian allowed. "Now I just fire anyone incompetent, but they normally don't make it all the way up to me. At least the people working within my business department."

"Oh, thank you for the flowers." Ana said, suddenly remembering the item that had instigated the renewal of their conversation. "They're beautiful." She'd left them at work but would be bringing them back to her apartment tomorrow. It would be something nice and fresh in her new apartment. The whole place seemed a bit too quiet at the moment, something Ana was not used to despite the fact that her ex-roommate was almost never home at her old one.

"I'm surprised you didn't send them to my house since I'm sure you already know where I live."

Guilt flashed across Christian's face. "I had my security look into it, but I didn't have them give me your address."

Ana barked out a laugh, completely unsurprised that her assumption was a hundred percent correct. "You are so lucky that I'm not screaming stalker right about now."

"It's for your safety Ana. I need to know where you live."

"How exactly is that for my safety?"

"What if I'm with you one night and I need to take you home and your incapacitated?"

"Incapacitated?" Ana leaned back heavily. "You mean drunk. I hardly doubt you'd be leaving me home alone anyways. You'd just take me back to yours."

"Ana, you need to understand that my world is different than yours. It includes background checks on people before I even meet them and security following me around for my entire life. I am worth a lot of money and people want to hurt me because of it and by extent the people that I am with."

"Trust me, Christian. I know. That's the reason that I haven't run off screaming just yet. Our worlds are different and I couldn't even come close to comprehending. I don't plan on running to the nearest news station and getting my five minutes of fame."

Christian breathed out, relief and gratitude clear on his face. "Whether or not we're going…public, I need to make sure that you're safe. I don't want anyone to get hurt because of me and if that means intruding on your privacy more than your other friends would I apologize, but I will not change anything."

Ana hummed her agreement. It was definitely a new change for her but she could understand where he was coming from. She'd never had money that would put herself in a situation like that, but she wasn't blind to the world and she could appreciate his preemptive measures. "Just tell me next time what's happening, 'kay?"

Christian blinked, looking surprised. "What do you mean?"

"Just tell me what you're going to do. I don't think this is going to be the first and only time we're going to come across a situation like this. Just warn me in advance. Or ask. I would have been fine sending you my address if that's what you wanted." Christian had the good grace to look uncomfortable. It left Ana wondering what his interactions were normally like with every day people that didn't work for him. "Is there anything else I should be prepared for?" It took Christian a moment to answer, clearly not expecting the ease of Ana's acceptance. "Did you think I was going to argue?"

"Yes."

"Why? I like being safe just as much as you do."

Christian shrugged then laughed. He shook his head, smiling down at Ana. He leaned in and pressed a kiss against her forehead, letting his lips linger against her skin. "I should have known not to expect anything from you. You should hear how many times that I have to yell at my sister for ditching her CPO."

"What's a CPO?"

"Close Protection Officer."

Ana nodded. "Well, I'm just glad that I don't have to have one of those." Ana frowned at the look that Christian gave her. "I don't right? Your sister having one makes sense. No one knows who I am."

He considered her. "We'll talk about it later."

"Later as in never," Ana replied, straightening up and levelling Christian with a look. She already knew him well enough that later meant he planned on doing it with or without her concent. "It's not like we're going to be going public."

"What?" Christian asked harshly.

Ana frowned, tugging her hand. Christian tightened his grip until Ana finally relaxed and let their hands stay together. "I thought that was what you wanted? I've never seen or heard of you with any other women before so clearly you like to keep your private life private, something that I completely understand and since I'm not your girlfriend I don't expect you to go around taking me on dates."

Christian frowned but didn't refute.

They spent the rest of the ride in silence, Christian staring out the window yet every time that Ana tried to regain her hand back he refused to let go. Slowly Ana leaned back into her seat and stared out her own window into the late traffic, aware of the heavy silence in the car and every slight point of pressure from where their hands remained linked.

"This is where you live?" Ana gaped at the tall building when it became clear that they were entering into the private parking garage of Escala, one of the largest and richest apartment complexes in Seattle. Her gaping turned even wider when they pulled into a parking spot that clearly stated PENTHOUSE. There were multiple other stalls marked the same with other cars already parked in them. It wasn't until that moment that Ana realized how unimpressive the car she was sitting in was compared to the rest of the cars parked there. She couldn't name a single one other than some of them were Audis and the others looked like a ridiculously expensive sports car. There was only one other similar looking SUV that Ana assumed was for the staff. The meaning of the staff apartment suddenly made a lot more sense. She gaped at Christian. "You live in the penthouse?"  
"I would have thought you would already know this from the stalking you did of myself before the interview." Christian taunted.

Ana returned his smile. "There wasn't anything about where you lived." She cringed, realizing she should have refuted the stalking claim before anything else. Christian only laughed and pulled her out of the car, making her exit through his side. "Sorry."

"Don't apologize." They paused in front of Taylor who handed Christian his briefcase. "Taylor can take your keys."

"What. Why?"

"You said that you were fine with him picking up your car. It will save you time this evening instead of having to drive all over the city."

"Oh, right," Ana mumbled, pulling her keys out of her bag and handing them over to the formidable looking man. She was placing a lot of trust in Christian and his staff but despite feeling a bit out of her depths at multiple points, she'd never felt in danger. "When you open the door to the driver's side make sure you tug hard or it won't open. It also doesn't lock so don't worry about that. Just tug the door as hard as you can and it will open eventually."

Taylor took the keys slowly, eyes darting to Christian. "Understood, Ms. Steele."

"You don't lock your car?" Christian said from beside her.

Ana lifted a shoulder in a shrug. "I never keep anything valuable in there and it's not like the door opens easily anyways. If anyone's tried before they didn't have any luck since I still have a car."

Christian stares at her a moment longer before finally leading her towards the elevator. "We're going to have to do something about that."

"No, we don't. My car's fine." Ana said, but quickly got distracted, Christian's arm coming up around her side and pulling her in close to him. The breath left her body. The enter the elevator, the ride passing in a flash due to Christian pressing a button that sends them sky rocketing upwards without stopping on any other floor. Ana spends all of that time pined to the back of the elevator with her arms held above her head and Christian's lips on her own.

"Still only impressed with the penthouse?" Christian pulled away with a smirk when the elevator door opened behind them.

Ana gasped for breath, feeling her face heat with embarrassment at the amount of time it took for her to regather her bearings. She cleared her throat. "Maybe just a bit." Then they walked into the actual penthouse and Ana was gaping anew. Christian stood behind her, wrapping both of his arms around her waist and pulling her into him. Ana smiled at the warmth and gesture but couldn't pull herself away from the view in front of her.

The penthouse was simply to say _amazing_. Floor to ceiling windows looked out on to the city of Seattle with the sun slowly setting while the inside displayed an enormous amount of wealth but decorated in what could only be described as classy.

"How do you afford this place," Ana breathed.

"I am incredibly wealthy man, Anastasia. It shouldn't come as a surprise to you that I'm able to afford a place like this without even having to consider my budget. I make more money in every second that goes by than most people will in their lifetime."

"Arrogant much?" Ana asked, though it lacked any serious bite, Christian being the least of Ana's attention at the moment.

"Honest."

Ana pulled away from him and moved over to the window, staring at the people walking down below, looking like tiny ants and having no idea about what was above them. "I knew you were rich and what your net worth is but I never actually put it together. This is…" She looked around again. It wasn't until she looked back at Christian that she noticed him standing there with his hands in his pockets and a small smile on his face. "What?"

He stepped towards her, not speaking until he was in front of her once again, taking both of her hands in his. "You are absolutely nothing like what I expect."

Ana cringed a little bit, pulling away her cheeks aflame once again. His words didn't feel like a line but she certainly didn't expect to hear them from him, especially after he'd been so clear about their relationship. She had an odd moment to wonder if maybe she wasn't the one that needed to worry about setting boundaries to protect her feelings, but him that should. Ana laughed to herself, men like Christian Grey knew exactly how to live life and didn't need any instructions from Ana.

She tilted her head up and gave an impish grin. "I'm pretty special, I know."

Christian threw his head back and laughed, pride coursing through Ana's body at knowing she was the one that put that sound in the room. "You are definitely unique," Christian said when he was finished laughing. He pulled her closer. "I've never slept with anyone in the living room before. Would you like to christen it with me?"

Ana's eyes lit up. "I would be delighted."

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	5. Chapter 5

**An update! Thanks everyone for their patience. I'm going to plan on updating this story every Wednesday and Sunday at this point though is subject to change but you should get warnings ahead of time. I hope you guys like this chapter! Answers a few of the questions I know you have all asked.**

 **Please read and review!**

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"You know, you could always spend the night," Christian said, watching as Ana clambered out of his large bed and reached for her clothes. He was reclined against the pillows in his room, completely nude and uncaring at all.

Ana side eyed him, knowing that the main reason he hadn't even moved the sheets was because he didn't want Ana to leave and knew that she was a sucker for his body. She'd never seen anyone so sculpted and always like to take advantage of it even if he wouldn't let her run her hands down his chest like she wanted to.

"If I spend the night then I'm never going to want to get out of bed in the morning." She would also be confined to the guest room, something that Ana had discovered the first time that she was over much to her displeasure. It was most likely a blessing in disguise, but either way, not something that Ana would choose to do.

The first night that she was over they had stayed up late—at least later than Ana would have stayed up if she'd been home alone, since the following day would only be her second day at work. Most of the time had been spent having sex on various surface, from the couch, to the dining room table.

They'd broken for a quick bite to eat, some food that Christian's housekeeper had apparently left for the both of them, before retiring to Christian's room where they broke in the bed. It was funny to think about how she could go twenty-one years of life without having sex and hardly caring about it—but then when she was introduced to it, everything was turning her on, and all she wanted was Christian between her legs.

Ana had been drifting off to sleep when Christian slipped off the bed, Ana's hazy mind barely acknowledgement the movement. Until it did, Christian's hands slipping under her body and pulling her towards his chest as he carried her to another room because Christian Grey didn't sleep in the same bed as the women he was sleeping with. That had been news to Ana. She'd pretended to be asleep when Christian laid her in the guest bed, eyes snapping open the moment that the bedroom door closed behind him. She knew what she was to Christian, wasn't under any disillusions, but that was the very first time that Ana had ever felt cheap while in his company.

Christian hummed, pushing himself off the bed and padding over to Ana. He ignored her squawking and waving hands to pull her back against him. "What if I made sure to give you enough incentive to wake up? I can be your personal wake up call." He placed kisses up and down her neck, sucking lightly but never enough to leave a mark.

"Christian!" Ana pulled away with a laugh, darting away to put on the rest of the clothes she could find in her vicinity, which consisted of her jeans and oversized sweatshirt. She hadn't bothered with a bra when she got Christian's call this evening having just gotten home from work and already gotten comfortable for the night. He didn't go to her place and she wasn't about to get dressed up in something that was just going to get taken off.

She was dressed quickly and sliding on her socks when Christian found his way over to her again, this time wearing a pair of worn jeans that she'd seen quite a few times since she'd been at Christian's apartment. They were worn denim that he always wore shirtless and with no underwear, giving Ana plenty of material for her fantasies when Christian was on business trips, something that seemed to occur a lot despite it only being a month since they started their relationship.

"Are you busy tomorrow?" Christian asked, pulling her to her feet and leading her out to the main room where she'd first left her shoes.

"I'm doing my laundry tomorrow and cleaning the apartment."

"Can those be pushed aside to the next day?"

"Should they be?" Ana quirked a brow.

"Yes," Christian took her hand and pulled them back to the couch and sitting so Ana stood between his legs. "I have a surprise for you. I'll pick you up early tomorrow morning so don't sleep in."

"What do I need to bring?"

"Nothing except yourself. Taylor and I will come to pick you up and Gail will make sure that everything is prepared."

Ana snorted a bit at that. She had met Gail, the housekeeper shortly after going to Christian's apartment the first time. It was safe to say that she was the one that made sure the house kept running while Christian was away.

"I suppose I can do that." Ana smirked, stepping further into Christian and leaning over him. Her hands went on either side of his shoulders, hair cascading down around her face. She was careful not to touch his chest as he had specified after a few close calls when Ana's hands had flailed around. She'd questioned it a little but when Christian and closed off she had finally backed off and accepted without any more prompting. She'd known she had made the right decision when after a few more visits Christian relaxed around her even more than when she first slept with him. "Is it a good surprise?"

"Are there such things as bad surprises?"

"I could be a person who doesn't like surprises."

"…are you?"

Ana laughed and kissed Christian. She pulled away before it could get any more serious, relishing the groan of protest when their lips separated.

"Taylor's ready to drive you back." Christian stood and followed Ana out into the foyer where she collected her purse and keys, Taylor already standing there waiting, despite Ana only just deciding to leave.

She waved her keys around. "I could have driven myself you know."

"Just as easily as Taylor can drive you. Now I don't have to worry about you being tired and getting into an accident."

"Taylor could be just as tired."

Christian angled his body so he was blocking Ana's view of Taylor and lowered his voice even though Taylor always did his best to block out what they were saying unless they were specifically addressing him. "I wasn't tiring Taylor out this evening, I was tiring you out and I know I don't want you driving yourself right now."

"You just don't like me driving my car."

Christian frowned. "It certainly is an extra incentive. That thing is a death trap."

"Well, when I have enough money for a new car I'll get one. As of now it's served its purpose. We all can't live in a castle in the sky."

"Or you could let me buy you a car."

Ana blinked and waited for the punchline of the joke before realizing that Christian was serious. She shouldn't have been surprised, Christian was more than insistent on spoiling her and had been raging at her car from the very moment he saw it. He liked to send her lunch, despite her always reminding him that she packed her own lunch, but she was never one to complain for a free hot meal and it meant that she already had dinner when she went home since she would eat her lunch then. He had even given her an entire wardrobe and hadn't thought twice about it.

She'd grown incredibly uncomfortable and avoided the whole room where her 'closet' was when she realized that the reason that Christian was so nonchalant about it was because he thought it was expected. It hadn't been until that moment that Ana wondered if the previous women that he'd had a similar arrangement with weren't friends with benefits but high class escorts.

"You're not buying me a car Christian," Ana said flatly.

Christian's jaw clenched, a move that Ana had come to recognize meant he was gearing up for an argument that he didn't plan on losing. She could only imagine seeing that look from him at GEH as he argued the latest contract with some foreign company. It was hot when he was using it against anyone but her.

"Christian, no," Ana said before he could say anything else. "You do not need to buy me a car. I'm not some prostitute for you to pay to get you to sleep with, that's not what this is about." She noticed vaguely that Taylor had taken that moment to escape, a wise decision.

"I know that you're not Ana, but that doesn't mean that I can't buy nice things for you."

"Buying nice things for me is dinner, or flowers—and you already do that Christian." Ana threw her hands up in the air. She took a deep breath, and forced her words to come out slower and calmer. "Why do you want to buy me a car?"

"I've already told you this, Ana," Christian replied, completely exasperated, and for him this was a pointless, nonsensical conversation. "Your car is dangerous and I want to know that you are going to be getting everywhere you go safely. If that means that I buy you a new car, then I'll buy you a new car. I won't even notice the amount in my bank account; it is so small to me. I spend more money every day with the employees that I employ." He shook his head. "I spend more than that when I buy lunch for everyone in the office!"

"I get it, you're filthy rich Christian. You still don't need to buy me a car and it's not dangerous." She was glad that she had never mentioned how much she did want a new car, that would have made grounding Christian even more difficult.

"A car that you're too scared to drive to your fathers who lives only a couple of hours away and were praying to Jesus would survive the ride up here to Seattle is not a 'safe car'." He actually made quotation marks with his hands. Ana snorted, immediately burying her nose in the palm of her hand, wiping away her amused smile. "That thing is a death trap."

"I'm not the only one going around in the world with a car that might break down," Ana replied. "I'm going to be fine. I barely drive the thing anyways and I only do it around the city, so if I do break down, it won't be that hard to pull over."

"Or you could just let me buy you a new car so that you don't even need to worry about it breaking down," Christian insisted.

"Okay," Ana took a deep breath, "Our main issue here is that we've never made boundaries and we both have way bigger expectations than I think either one of us realized. We need to draw up some rules."

"Rules?" Christian's eyes light up.

Suddenly Ana is a bit worried about her word choice. "Rules," Ana agreed, allowing Christian to pull her back into the living room. They both sat down, Ana on the couch and Christian taking the chair across from her. This was seeming more and more like a business setting; she was almost surprised he hadn't led her to the dining table or his office.

"How do you want to start?" Christian leaned back and crossed one leg over the other.

The words were kind but Ana had no doubt that Christian knew exactly where he wanted to lead this. Ana straightened her shoulders. This was their relationship, even if it was a bit non-traditional, and she wasn't going to be walked over. If only her friends back home could see her now, her very first relationship and it wasn't even a real relationship.

"Have you done this before?" Ana asked, pleased when she saw the look of discomfort flash across Christian's face.

"I don't see how my previous relationships has anything to do with our negotiation."

Ana almost snorted knowing that she'd hit the nail on the head. Christian had always been incredibly reluctant to speak about previous relationships, eager to steer them to another topic. Ana had never fought to hard, also not wanting to broach the topic, but this time she wasn't going to let either one of them stop. "It does when it's playing a heavy role in what our expectations are for this relationship. You seem to have it all mapped out what you want but I'm not falling into the line that you've drawn. I need to know what you expect."

"And what about your relationships? I don't think it's fair to only speak about mine."

"Christian, we're not talking about how many relationships you've had, I don't need play by plays. I just want to know what your past relationships were like," Ana huffed. "I'm not the one with a history of no strings attached flings."

"But you are the one with previous relationships and I want to make sure that you're not going to expect anything more than what I can give." Christian drew forward, leaning his elbows against his knees.

"That's the whole point of this entire conversation," Ana waved her hand in exasperation. There was no way that Christian was like this during his business meetings.

"You're the one that insisted on speaking about relationships," Christian replied with a fake, easy smile on his face.

"I'm really not."

"If you want to know about my history then I reserve the same right."

"I really think you're missing the point here," Ana didn't even try to stop herself from rolling her eyes. She made it even bigger and more obvious knowing how much it annoyed Christian, him making various comments every time she did.

Christian leveled her a look. Ana smirked.

"Fine," Ana threw her hands in the air. Maybe if she started they would get the conversation rolling. If she wanted honesty, it was only fair to give honesty in return. "My dating history: none."

Christian froze, a look of extreme distaste washing over his face later. "So you've only ever had sexual encounters with men in your past. How many?"

"Uh, no," Ana said, eyes wide with amazement having no idea how he had drawn such a conclusion. "Are you calling me a slut? How many women have you slept with?"

"That's beside the point."

"Spoken like a true slut," Ana couldn't stop herself from saying. She held up a hand to stop Christian from continuing knowing that this could segue into a giant fight that neither one of them needed. She was enjoying their relationship and didn't want it to end when it had barely started. "You were my first."

Christian froze again, this time it took a lot longer for Ana's words to process in his mind. "What?" he gaped.

"You were my first." She pressed her hands tightly into the sides of her legs, fingers digging into the fabric of her jeans. She hadn't wanted to say anything about this, had been entirely content to never let Christian know and a large part still didn't want to tell him. But their conversation had quickly been derailing and she knew if anything would bring them back it was going to be her words.

There were very few people in her life that knew of her virginity status and she was sure some didn't even realize that they did—or had. Some were high school friends and most likely assumed that she had lost it at some point and simply not told them. Not the simple fact that she just was still a virgin. There was always way too much ceremony around it and was one of the reasons why she'd been more than thrilled to lose it the way she had. Better than most people's first and still completely hers. A night to remember.

"You were… a virgin?" Christian seemed almost scared of saying the last word, his eyes finding Ana's and latching on as if she were going to disappear in a moment's notice.

Ana nodded, shoulders tense.

Christian exhaled a shaky breath. She wasn't sure exactly what reaction she'd been expecting but this… fear wasn't it.

"How?" Christian asked in a strangled voice.

"How was I still a virgin?"

"There aren't many twenty-one-year-old virgins Ana," he replied sharply.

"I'm sure there're more than people think." Ana looked away, taking in the city below them. It was always one of her favorite things to do when she was at Christian's apartment, especially when he was finishing up a call when she first arrived.

"Ana." Christian stood and made his way around the coffee table. He sat on the couch and pulled Ana into his lap. She went easily, more out of surprise than actual willingness. "Why didn't you tell me?"

She pushed off his arm, and turned to face him, giving him a flat look. "This isn't an illness that I needed to be cured of nor is it something that needed to be cherished. It's my virginity, all it means is that I hadn't had sex, nothing else."

"You should have told me; I could have done something to make it special."

"It's just sex Christian. It wasn't any more special because it was my first time. I wanted to do it, so I did."

"But you were a virgin."

Ana pressed her lips together. "How did you lose your virginity? On a bed with white sheets and red rose petals spread all around you? Were you touched, and caressed, and reassured each time you were scared?"

"That's hardly comparable."

"Yes, it is. Just 'cause you're a man doesn't mean that your virginity isn't any different than mine. Christian," Ana soothed, "it was more than special. It was exactly what I wanted and needed and you could not have been a better partner. I couldn't have picked you out better myself. It's about respect. And you have always been incredibly clear in showing me the tremendous amount of respect that you have for me."

His grip tightened. "I do."

"That's why I chose you. I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier but I stand by my decision."

* * *

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	6. Chapter 6

"Can I at least ask one thing?" Christian asked a few minutes later, his arms wrapped loosely around Ana.

"Go ahead."

"Would you have told me if this conversation hadn't come up?"

"Probably not," Ana replied after a long moment of silence. She sighed, thinking back to that moment when she had woken up to a pleasant ache between her legs and no blood stain on the sheets. The only thing she had felt at that moment was relief. "I didn't see the need for it. I never thought I was going to see you again and that was more than fine with me. I never expected you to show up on my doorstep asking to see me again, and then we started this… relationship and I didn't know how to even think about bringing it up or really see the need to. No offense, it was none of your business."

Christian stared at her for a long moment until he pulled her into his chest and leaned back so they were both staring at the ceiling. "How could you want this type of relationship?" he asked quietly.

"The same way you can," Ana replied, glad she didn't have to look at Christian anymore. "Just because it was my first time having sex doesn't mean that I don't want this type of relationship." Ana changed her mind and twisted so she straddled Christian's lap. "No strings attached relationship isn't about experience in my opinion but whether or not you're the type of person that can do them. Yeah, I guess I'm in a bit more danger of catching feelings but this is still my choice and if it turns out bad than it's no one's fault but my own. I want a boyfriend at some point in my future but I'm happy with what we have. It won't last forever and we both know it. But that doesn't mean I can't have it for a little while."

Christian tensed for a moment, before forcing his body to relax.

"Is that a problem?" She wasn't sure which part she was asking about.

"No." Christian stood, depositing Ana back on the couch and returning to his seat opposite her.

She was disappointed at the display, knowing he was using it to separate them, but understanding at the same time. They needed to do this as clearly as they could, and constantly touching wasn't going to help matters. "So what about you? Are you going to tell me about your previous relationships?"

"I have slept with more women than I can count, you were right on that account." Christian answered pointedly, a look on his face as if he were trying to provoke her.

Ana snorted. Leave it to a man to number his previous exploits as a way to start the conversation.

"But I have had a strict no strings attached relationship with seventeen women," Christian continued.

"Seventeen?"

"I've slept with a few women with an arrangement that it would only last a night. That was mainly when I was younger but I disliked always having to find someone knew through the proper channels nor did I trust them as my name grew more and more well known."

"You had to protect yourself," Ana said.

Christian nodded his agreement. "I enter into contracted relationships with women who have signed a non-disclosure agreement and understand the terms and boundaries. I am not interested in romance and the moment that it seems to be happening, I break it off."

Ana raised a brow. This was the most that either one of them had specifically discussed their agreement. "How many of those seventeen have fallen in love with you?"

"Over half." Christian looked away. Now he was the one staring determinedly at the skyline though Ana didn't think he was seeing a single thing.

"How did you find these people?" Ana asked, not able to hide her curiosity any longer. She'd heard of friends making similar agreements, but they were just that, friends. She hardly doubted that Christian Grey would be fighting gay rumors if he was constantly propositioning women.

"You'll be surprised the amount of resources that are open to the wealthy," Christian replied, a bitter smirk on his face.

"Somehow I'm not surprised," Ana muttered to herself. "Why none of that with me?"

"Nothing with you was how I expected it to be," Christian replied, finally looking back at Ana. "I never approach people in my personal life to have a sexual relationship with. I've always been incredibly strict about keeping them separate. I don't want any overlap."

Ana could only imagine how many people would be throwing themselves at Christian day and night. Back when she'd first discovered him she had spent hours scouring sights dedicated to him and knew that he had hundreds of thousands of followers that would do anything to sleep with him. It was always slightly daunting that she had basically been one of them yet here she was, sitting in front of Christian Grey, getting told that she was different from the rest.

"I couldn't stay away from you," Christian took her chin in his hand, thumb rubbing her cheek.

"Is that what was up with all the invites to work for you? I thought you kept your work and personal life separate."

Christian grinned. A grin full of shyness and mischief. "I might have wanted to make an exception from you. Wouldn't complain too much if I had you at work with me. I'd love being able to call you up to my office whenever I wanted."

"Ha ha," Ana replied dryly. "That would not have been happening. I'm not about to get a reputation at your place of business."

"I would have been subtle."

"Famous last words," Ana smiled.

"When I took you back to my hotel I meant to talk to you but things got a little… carried away."

Ana snorted. "A little?" He'd barely been able to keep his hands off her in the car ride back, there wasn't even a chance in the elevator.

"You are very distracting, Ms. Steele."

Ana brushed some hair behind her ear and bit her lip, Christian's eyes immediately zooming in on the action. "I do try, Mr. Grey."

No one made her feel sexy like Christian Grey did. Almost every one of their couplings was frantic and quick until they both had each other temporarily out of their systems, then it became slower, each one of them savoring the moment with each other. It wasn't always when they were having sex. Christian's eyes would follow her the moment she entered into a room and always slow to look at something else.

"So the whole hotel and no drinking thing was because you wanted to draw up a contract and not actually have sex."

It's miniscule but an actual blush flashes across Christian's cheeks. It's the only sign of embarrassment Christian has shown, the rest of his face remaining unchanged. Ana envies his control, she always blushes, can feel when she does but has no way to stop it.

"How come you didn't when we met up later?" More like when Christian stalked her but she tactfully left that part out of the question.

"You distracted me once again," Christian grinned sheepishly. "And soon I found that I didn't even need it. You are the first that I've had sign at least a non-disclosure agreement after sleeping with you."

"What was it like with the other women? I assume that you gave them things since that's all you've been doing since we met." This was after all, the main point of this discussion.

"I admit that… gifts, were a part of our contract and something that I felt obligated too just for practicality."

"Practicality? It's not like they're ever going to be seen with you, so you don't have to worry about them being dressed nicely to keep your reputation good."

"They were previously agreed upon stipulations."

Ana pressed her lips together. "Sounds a lot like payment for sex."

"It wasn't."

Ana felt this could diffuse quickly into a yes, no argument and promptly pulled back. No point rehashing what was already done. "You still don't need to buy me anything. The clothes were seriously more than enough and I don't even know what to do with them."

"You could allow Taylor to take them to your apartment. I know that you were talking to your friends just the other day about not having enough work clothes and now you won't have to worry about it."

Christian was right, it had been one of the many conversations they had in the car when he had picked up her from work, but she'd tapered off immediately once the wardrobe showed up. The only time afterward that she could think about was when she was waiting for Christian to finish up some work and had been talking to her friend in the library. Ana frowned. "That doesn't mean that I need an entirely new wardrobe. There were swim suits in there Christian! I can't even remember the last time that I went swimming. Who swims in Seattle? It's way too cold."

"We have a pool in my building if you'd like to use it."

"Christian," Ana sighed in exasperation. She knew that Christian was playing with her but that there was also a way too serious note to his statement. All Ana needed to do was ask Christian for something and it would be hers. She wasn't displeased by this fact but it did leave her feeling uncomfortable, not wanting to take advantage of the generous man even though he was more than willing.

"Let me buy you a car and I'll stop with everything else." Christian was using his CEO voice in full, tone soothing but firm and it almost made Ana give in but she needed to stand strong for this.

"I don't know if I'm more worried about what 'everything else' means or how exactly you equate buying me a car to be something anywhere near reasonable."

"Anastasia, you need a new car."

"Mr. Grey, you insisting on buying me a car is a lot more unreasonable than you are making out. Do you normally just go around buying people cars? Most people buy others a plant as a house warming gift or give their new girlfriend a necklace—not insist on buying them a car."

"I don't understand why you are so reticent about this," Christian said. "You're not going to be the first person that I buy a car for. I bought a car for my sister just last month."

"Well, I'm not your sister. Christian!" Ana stepped off Christian's lap and grabbed her purse, Christian snapping to his feet at the movement, eyes taking on a panicked glow for a moment before receding behind his impassive mask. She hadn't seen it in a while and was a bit thrown by its sudden appearance. "I'm going to get going, Christian," Ana said, shaking her head, small smile on her face. "We're getting nowhere with this conversation. I'll see you tomorrow morning, let me know what time I should be awake."

"Wait, where are you going?" Christian grabbed Ana's hand, the other going around the handle of her purse and drawing her closer.

Ana frowned but allowed the movement. She always liked being in Christian's presence. "I'm going home… like I said I was going to. We're just talking each other in circles. We can finish this conversation later and no that does not mean that you're allowed to get me a car because we haven't come to an agreement."

The conversation in itself was ridiculous. The fact that Christian saw absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to spend such an ridiculous amount of money on a woman he barely knew and had done the same thing in the past was _absurd_.

"You're not leaving?"

Ana was tossed out of her thoughts by Christian's words. Pointing a thumb in the elevators direction she said, "I mean, yeah, I have to get home before it gets too late. Even if Taylor is driving me. I'll still see you tomorrow unless you don't want to…?"

"No," Christian pulled her even closer, relief washing over his face. "No," Christian said again. "I want to see you tomorrow. I have plans for the both of us. Be awake and ready by seven in the morning. Don't eat anything, we'll have breakfast there."

"There?" Ana asked. "What exactly are we doing?"

"You'll have to wait and find out," Christian said. He walked her the rest of the way to the elevator, their previous conversation seemingly forgotten about though she knew it would be brought up again at some point.

What had Ana's life become that she would be arguing against someone so furtively to _not_ give her gifts. As long as he never showed up with a car on her doorstep then she felt she would be fine with anything else that he sprung on her. A car was a bit much. She hadn't even gotten a car for her sixteenth birthday.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Anastasia. Taylor will meet you in the garage." Christian placed a warm kiss on her cheek and let the elevator doors slide closed.

Ana shook her head, an amused smile on her lips. She would never understand the magic that was Taylor, always knowing exactly when and where he was needed.

"After you, Ms. Steele," Taylor greeted, arm held out towards the car that he would be driving her home in.

"Thank you, Taylor."

* * *

"What are we doing?" Ana asked for what felt like the hundredth time since she had gotten into Christian's car that morning.

It was him driving, in one of the many incredible sports car that she had seen her first night in his parking garage, Taylor apparently unneeded for the day. If she'd been worried about them doing something in public all concerns had been brushed away at his absence.

"You'll see," Christian replied, a smug grin on his face.

Ana couldn't even pretend to scowl as she scanned the area that they were in. The Sound was growing clearer and clearer as they passed by the docks that were crowded with boats of all different sizes. Ana wasn't familiar with this area very much, choosing to stay much more local but she'd been here once with her father when they came up to Seattle to explore. It was just as beautiful now as it was then.

Christian had picked her up at seven sharp as promised with two thermoses, one filled with coffee and the other with Ana's favorite tea along with the promise that food would be waiting for them as long as Ana wasn't too hungry yet. She hadn't been.

"Wait. Seriously, where are we going?" Ana asked when instead of continuing on the road, they pulled into the docks.

"We spend an awful amount of time in only my apartment. I figured that we could spend some time outdoors and my boat provides us all the privacy we could wish for."

"Your boat," Ana couldn't help but repeat, mouth hanging open as she stared at Christian from where she was twisted in her seat.

"My boat," Christian said, a proud grin on his face. They slowly pulled to a stop, the two of them clambering out. Ana wrapped her jacket tighter around herself. She was dressed for the weather in Seattle, but it was always colder the further outside of it they got, especially next to the water. Christian motioned ahead of them where amongst all the other sail boats that lined was another one, this one not as big as the rest, but somehow seeming to be so much more impressive. "She's named the Grace."

"After your mother?"

Christian nodded.

Ana whistled as they drew closer, Ana trailing behind Christian who walked with firm steps. She wondered how often he came out here. "Will you be driving the boat?"

"Sailing," Christian corrected absently. "I do know how to, but not this time." They strolled to a stop in front of the boat where Ana spotted Taylor talking to another man who approached them as soon as he spotted Christian.

"Mr. Grey, good to see you today. You chose an excellent day for sailing."

Shaking hands Christian introduced Ana. "This is Mac, my captain. He's in charge of keeping her in shape and getting her all ready to go before I got out and occasionally sailing her like he is today."

Ana smiled kindly at the teddy bear looking man who returned Ana's smile just as easily, light lines on his face showing the marks of a happy man who loved to laugh. He reminded Ana of Ray.

"I thought you said no Taylor," Ana questioned, nodding her head to Taylor who was still standing a few feet behind.

"He's taking care of the car," Christian said like it was no big deal that he had staff to do what normal people did, such as park their car.

"Mr. Grey. Ms. Steele," Taylor said, taking the keys from Christian's hand and walking back the way they had come without even an adieu. He was a man of few words who took his job seriously though Ana always noted the teasing tint in his eyes when he addressed her so formally.

"Are you ready to come aboard, Ms. Steele?" Mac asked.

Ana's eyes flew from Christian's to Mac's to the boat. "Yeah!"

Mac laughed and went ahead, letting Christian lead the way. "There is breakfast ready for us on board. We can eat as Mac sets sail or later if you'd like to watch. I made sure to have Gail pack some warmer clothes for you so you don't have to worry about getting cold."

"I wouldn't have had to worry if you had just told me what we were doing," Ana replied but couldn't hide the smile of delight. She squeezed Christian's arms tightly as she beamed up at him. "This is so fantastic. This is my first time on a boat."

"I've never taken someone out on this boat besides my family Ms. Steele, so it's a first for the both of us."

"You've never taken anyone out here before?" Ana followed Christian down below deck. It was smaller than Ana was sure other boats were but very clearly still expensive; everything having a polish about it that screamed money.

Christian placed Ana's purse on one of the chairs and motioned towards an elaborate display of breakfast food all ready for them. Christian hadn't been kidding when he said that breakfast was waiting.

"I have kept all of my relationships private but I will admit that of the women who I had an arrangement with, we kept it very strictly to the bedroom and even if I wanted to take them out on the boat, I trusted very few to behave accordingly in my presence outside of my apartment, especially if we actually did run into paparazzi."

"Oh," Ana replied. She hadn't quite expected his previous relationships to come up again so quickly, given how reticent he'd been about them in the first place but was grateful that he trusted her enough to tell her and even take her on board. "Well, I'm glad you took me. This place is a dream."

"Let's finish the tour," Christian took her hand and pulled her along.

"There's more?" Ana gaped as Christian led her to another door that turned out to be an actual bedroom with not just a twin or queen bed, but king. "This place is amazing. Do you ever spend the night here?"

"I did when I first got the boat. It was one of my first big purchases after the company had really taken off. I would take the boat out during the weekend, just me, and decompress from the week."

"How come you don't do it anymore?"

"I don't know," Christian sighed, staring out the window. It was below sea level so he was looking at the water as it passed by. "I got busy and let myself make excuses to not come out here as much."

"Either way, it sounds fantastic," Ana replied, not having meant to put a damper on the mood.

Christian pulled her in for a hug. "I'll take you out overnight some time."

A part of her felt she was supposed to pull away and deny the necessity of that but she found herself agreeing before she could even think of saying no. "I'd love that."

The boat started gaining speed, Ana's eyes darting to the floor as if she could see the water beneath them.

"Do you want to watch?" Christian asked.

Ana nodded eagerly, already moving towards the stairs. "How did you learn to sail?" she asked as Christian followed behind her.

"I did rowing in college—"

"Really?" Ana eyed him with interest. "I didn't know that."

"Not many people do," Christian shrugged. They settled in at the front of the boat, the light scent of sea in the air. "I actually got into Harvard on a rowing scholarship but denied it. Figured that it could go to someone else who actually needed it although my dad wasn't too pleased when I dropped out myself a year later. Don't know if he would have been more or less mad if I'd actually taken the scholarship.

"I always enjoyed rowing," Christian continued. "Physical exercise was something my dad got me into when I was younger and getting into lots of fights at school. Anything that made me burn a sweat and left my muscles aching was exactly what I wanted and rowing fell right into that category. I fell in love with the water and wanted something similar once I was no longer rowing since you can't row a one-man boat. Sailing was my option. Not as vigorous of physical labor, but I find peace out here."

Ana smiled as she watched Christian speak, staring out at the water. Mac was elsewhere so it felt like just the two of them. Ana's heart was at odds with the stillness around them, the only real sound coming from the water chopping beneath them as they sailed along, but it was still light and only added a sense of tranquility. This was the first time that Christian really spoke about his childhood and Ana relished it, her heart clenching as Christian opened up about his past, telling her things that even she had never heard of before.

"It's peaceful," she agreed leaning against the railing, Christian's arm warm against her own.

They fell into silence, both of them enjoying the breeze of the air. The silence wasn't broken until Ana shivered.

"You're cold," Christian stated.

"Just a bit." Ana rubbed at her arms through her coat.  
"Let's go inside and have breakfast. There should be some hot chocolate somewhere down there. I don't know how warm the rest of the food will be at this point."

They turned back towards the cabin.

"Christian Grey feeding me cold food. The world never ceases to be full of surprises."

Christian grinned, smacking her bottom with a light tap. "I don't appreciate your cheek Ms. Steele."

"Something tells me you do."

Their food was not warm by the time they got to it.

* * *

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	7. Chapter 7

**I was gonna upload this later but my plans got canceled for the day, so what the heck, I'm gonna upload it now. You guys will like this chapter but the next few... I can't wait!**

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* * *

A few hours later found them still in bed, this time with the breakfast plates on the floor beside them. Ana was laying on her stomach, a pillow shoved under her head while Christian stroked patterns onto her bare back, the movement sending her closer and closer to slumber. Occasionally she'd blink her eyes open to gaze at Christian, a light smile playing on her lips. He never noticed, his eyes locked onto the movement of his hand, face the most relaxed Ana had ever seen it.

Ana blinks again and snuggles further into the pillows letting out a sigh of contentment. The boat had stopped moving about an hour ago and they've been rocking side to side gently since then. If it were warmer weather she'd insist on a dip, but as of now she was more than content to snuggle with Christian in the bed below deck. They could bundle themselves up later and watch the water.

"Can we finish our list of rules?"

Christian's words came to Ana slowly, eyes fluttering to Christian's face then drifting closed again. "Why?"

Christian smoothed his hand down her back and laid down next to her, drawing her in so that her back was to his front, the only position he's ever comfortable with them adopting when they are both naked. Christian wasn't much of a cuddler, often keeping his shirt on, even when the rest of him was completely naked. Ana hadn't asked yet but she was burning with curiosity.

"You were right about setting rules and boundaries," Christian replied. "I skipped it with you but now I see that they can be useful for more than just…"

"More than just keeping your privacy?" Ana finished for him, her head tucked beneath Christian's chin. Ana plays with his fingers, pulling on each one then letting them go.

"Yes." Christian tangled their fingers together, stopping Ana's movements.

"What do you want to talk about?"

"I want…" Christian shifted suddenly so that he was leaning with Ana beneath him, her hands pressed against the bed with his own. "I want to be able to get you things."

"Christian—"

"No, Ana. Please hear me out. They're not—I'm not trying to bribe you into being with me, I know you're not with me for that reason. Nothing about how we got together would indicate that. You left the first morning, all of this is on me, me pushing for it; I know it's not like that. But that doesn't stop me from wanting to give you things. Don't think of them as payment. They're just gifts. Gifts that I want to give you because I appreciate you."

"Gifts are flowers during work, like you did on the first day. I didn't argue about those."

"You did the next one."

"I did when you kept sending them. Everyone at works thinks I have a secret boyfriend even though I tell them they're from my dad. It doesn't help that you always pick me up," Ana muttered at the end.

Christian's smirk is positively full of smug pride.

Ana's jaw dropped. "Is that your plan? Trying to lay a claim on me?"

"I want them to know that you're mine."

"What happened to not your girlfriend?"

"You're not my girlfriend," Christian said. He didn't say it quickly or rushed, it was just matter of fact, as if it hadn't even crossed his mind otherwise and that in itself probably hurt more.

She smiled, forcing the stab through her heart away. She would have time to nurse her sore heart later, especially when she knew she was an idiot to even think things different when he's always been clear about his emotions in regards to them. They had just discussed this the night before.

"I just want to give you nice things. Don't friends give each other nice things?"

Ana almost wanted to say something about the friend label, but decided against it. Instead she latched onto the word. It would become her anchor because that's all she would ever be to Christian Grey and that was just fine. She never thought she would be anything more. Friends with Christian Grey was more than nineteen-year-old Ana would have ever dreamed.

" _Friends_ ," Ana said, "don't buy each other cars."

"I didn't say anything about a car." Ana tugged at her wrists until Christian got the hint and released them, leaning back so Ana could sit up.

She gave him a look, pulling the sheets up so her breasts were covered, Christian's eyes following the movement before retreating back to her face. "Then why do I get the feeling that this will be coming back to the car?"

Christian deflated so fast Ana let out a bark of laughter, hand going over to ruffle Christian's hair. She realized a minute too late that he might not like that, except Christian was pressing his head into her hand, flopping onto the bed, Ana's hand going with it and getting trapped underneath his head. "Can I really not buy you a car?"

"Did you buy a car for all your previous relationships."

"Yes."

"Yes?" Ana replied, startled by the response.

"Yes," Christian sat up and clasped Ana's hand, ignoring the sheet as it pooled at her stomach. Ana was vaguely impressed by his firm gaze, but knew it was only because he was determined to get that answer he wanted. "It was part of the pre-determined arrangement."

"You bought all seventeen girls a car when they agreed to sleep with you? My dad hasn't even bought that many cars in his entire life."

"They weren't super cars."

"Somehow I doubt they were old used cars."

"Let me buy you a car," Christian said. "Whatever kind you want, just name it."

Ana scooted off the bed and reached for Christian's shirt and her underwear, tossing Christian his own pair of boxer briefs. Once they were both closed, they sat down on the bed facing each other.

"Now," Ana said, "why do you want to buy me a car so bad?" She knew that he was completely serious with his last comment. She could name the most expensive car under the sun that very moment and it would be waiting for her as soon as they got off the boat.

"Because your car is shit and I want to make sure that you are safe, Ana. We've been over this."

"And we've been over that normal people don't buy their friends cars!"

"I'm not a normal person! Ana, I am a billionaire. Money isn't something that I just scrape by with. I haven't had to budget since the first year that I opened up GEH. I own hundreds of companies all around the world. You cannot compare me with your average Joe-somebody walking down the street."

"You might not be Joe-somebody, Christian, but I am. I am just your average college graduate and this is not normal for me! You've said it yourself, I'm not your girlfriend. Our relationship isn't going to last forever and I'm going to have to go back to the real world where people don't buy me cars just 'cause they want to. Not because they don't want to, but because they can't afford it. _Like normal people_."

"Then let me buy you a car before this is done," Christian said through gritted teeth looking less than pleased at Ana's words but she refused to take them back.

"Christian, you are really missing the point here."

"I think you're missing the point."

They glared. They glared some more. Finally, Ana huffed and moved to put her pants on. They might as well continue this conversation outside where they can watch a different piece of scenery.

"I can always buy it for you and it'll be too late to stop me," Christian muttered as Ana walked out the bedroom door.

Ana whirled. "Do that and I'll never drive it."  
"Then I'll just make sure you don't have another option."

Ana wants to be mad but mostly she's amused at how desperate Christian is getting, the pure petulance in his voice. All he needed to do was cross his arms over his chest and stomp his feet. The picture of a five-year-old would be complete.

"Christian," Ana moved over to him and grabbed his hands. She placed them on her face. He immediately cupped her cheeks and moved closer forcing her to tilt her head back to see him. "You're not buying me a car or getting rid of my car or any of that. The answer is no. Okay?"

Christian pressed his lips together, displeasure clear in his eyes. "Fine," he said through gritted teeth. He exhaled and pressed their foreheads together, closing his eyes. "Can I at least give you gifts?"

Ana hugged him. "Gifts within reason."

"What if you just don't know how much it is?"

Ana burst out laughing. She wanted to say that would know, but the that would be stretching the truth quite a bit. She knew that all of the clothes in the closet Christian provided her were designer, yet they all looked like normal wear to her. "Just don't go overboard. I'll leave you to it, just stay within reason and don't make me regret saying this. Seriously." She pulled away and pointed a finger in his face.

Christian laughed and bit it lightly. "Only you Ana would be so against receiving gifts from a billionaire."

"Stop tooting your own horn." Ana moved away, returning back to the main room where she popped a grape in her mouth from the provided fruit platter. She forwent the jackets and instead grabbed a large, heavy blanket and headed towards the stairs. "You coming?"

"Coming," Christian grumbled, wrapping a blanket around his chest. He was still bare chested, much to Ana's delight, not that he had much of a choice due to her commandeering his shirt.

* * *

"We're going to be here another couple of hours before Mac takes us back to land," Christian said, taking a seat next to Ana. He pulled her into his lap and wrapped the blanket around them so that they were cocooned, gazing out at the water.

"How come there aren't more people out?" Ana nodded to the empty water. She could see another boat a bit further away, but she had expected a lot more on such a clear day, especially with all the boats in the dock.

Every time she saw boats at a dock she would wonder who owned them. It hardly seemed like they got used, and she knew it was not cheap to have a boat or store it for any amount of time. Was it like when people owned a bike and never used it? Pretty expensive toy, though if the people who owned it were like Christian, it was penny change.

"Too cold, I suppose," Christian replied.

"It's not like we're swimming in the water." Ana tucked her head under Christian's chin. "I bet it's busier during a three-day weekend."

Christian hummed his agreement but didn't say anything else.

Silence settled over them, Ana taking the moment to think back to their conversation and how different their worlds were for Christian to think it completely acceptable to spoil her with so many gifts. It wasn't so much the gifts, she knew that some people liked and wanted that. Even expected it. It had just never occurred to Ana how someone from that lifestyle didn't know what it was like for someone in hers. The fact that it didn't even cross Christian's mind that she wouldn't want it until she started protesting. Ana didn't want to know what would have happened if the car was his first gift to her as opposed to the closet full of clothes.

It wasn't that surprising when she thought about it. He was stuck up in a board room all day and instead of learning how to make personal connections, he'd stuck with professional. She could see it all around him, just in the way that he interacted with other people. Even the way he interacted with her. He might pick her up from work some days but he could never hide the initial surprise when she asked question about his day or life. The only time she saw him interacting with other people were his employees—employees who all addressed him by last name. Ana didn't even call the big boss at her work by his last name.

Christian kept himself separated from others in a way that she wasn't sure he was aware of, and if he did, she didn't know if he cared. Even his interactions with his family seemed to be incredibly controlled. She wondered what Christian was like as a child—if he had the same coldness to everyone he encountered as he did now.

It left her feeling special when he did treat her with a bit of warmth, or sent her flowers, or insisted on buying her a _car_. But to Christian it was and she needed to remember that. This was for Ana a fantasy come to life. She was spending hours of time with her crush of the past few years in a way that millions of other women would have made other women be green with envy.

Ana settled further into Christian's arms, gratified when they tightened around her.

* * *

Ana groaned and rolled over, frowning when an unfamiliar arm settled around her waist and pulled her into a chest in a move that she realized was restricting. As in, she'd been laying against someone's chest in the first place and had moved away before the movements were stopped. Ana frowned and opened her eyes, taking in the bedroom in front of her. It took her a moment longer to recognize it as Christians, her sleep addled mind making thoughts come slowly. That meant that man sleeping behind her was Christian and that she had spent the night the evening in his room.

Christian shifted and pulled her even closer, letting Ana know that they were both naked, his skin and chest hair against her bare back.

"Go back to sleep," Christian whispered.

Ana gave in, closing her eyes. She would think about the consequences later, if there were any. What had happened, happened and there was nothing she could do about it now besides carry on as normal.

* * *

Ana woke the second time to the bed dipping behind her. She blinked her eyes open slowly, a smile creeping on her face when she saw what was in front of her.

"What's this?" She asked, sitting up as Christian placed a tray laden with food in front of her.

"Breakfast," Christian smiled and handed her a glass of orange juice.

"I thought you said that Gail had the weekend off?"

"Billionaires aren't allowed to use their own kitchens?"

Ana giggled. Properly chastised she took a sip of her orange juice, smiling when she realized that it was freshly squeezed. "You're the one who's always insisted on Gail cooking for the both of us."

"I am an incredibly busy man, Ms. Steele. Cooking dinner is the last thing on my mind most nights. Especially the nights that I'm spending with you." The smirk on Christian's face is pure mischief, his hands sliding beneath the covers and pulling them down so Ana's breasts were bare to the world, pebbling at the cold air against them.

"Breakfast." Ana smacked Christian's hand away. He grinned good naturedly, letting Ana pull the covers up once more. Grabbing a plate, he held it out for her, then took his own.

"Omelets were one of the first thing I learned how to make," Christian said after Ana had taken her first bite and moaned her contentment.

Ana looked up, startled, before forcing her face into a more neutral expression with just a bit of interest. She was incredibly interested, Christian hardly ever spoke about his past, especially voluntarily.

"Food was a big thing for me growing up."

"I remember…" Ana bit her lip, unsure if speaking would end this trail of conversation. Christian nodded for her to continue. "I remember at graduation, you said that you knew what it was like to be hungry. Was this from before you were adopted?"

"Yes," Christian said after a long moment, swallowing thickly. He was looking intently at the omelet in front of him, fork cutting it into inch size pieces with focused precision. "Feeding me wasn't one of my birth mothers priorities. She was a crack whore who was more concerned about getting her next fix than making sure her son was properly fed. When she died they didn't find her body—they didn't find me—until nine days after when the neighbors finally complained about the smell. There was never a lot of food in the house and there was absolutely none by the time that the police showed up."

"Oh my god, Christian," Ana said, not knowing what else to say. She didn't move though, unsure of how Christian would react at this moment.

"Grace was the doctor on call the night they brought me in," Christian said. "I didn't speak a word for at least a month. Hated to be touched, but Mom—Grace, was always there for me." Christian huffed a deprecating laugh, "I was such a horrible kid. I have no idea how she put up with it. With me."

"She loved you."

Christian nodded. "She did." He looked down at his food again, this time actually seeing what was in front of him. He speared a piece of omelet and held it up between them. "Cooking was one of the first things that Grace taught me. I used to hide food at meal times. Sneak it away into my napkin and then my pockets. Whenever there was a box of granola bars I would take one—just one so I wasn't noticed—and then run up to my room and hide it under the bed."

Ana felt like her heart was breaking. She scooted closer and placed her hand on Christian's knee, the movement slow so he had as much time to move away if he needed to. This definitely answered some of Ana's own questions in regards to his disfavor of physical touch.

Christian placed his hand on top of Ana's and laced their fingers, continuing his monologue to his food. "Grace found it pretty early on. Came home from school one day after Dad had picked us up and found her in my room where she'd been making the bed. I was horrified, didn't even know what to do."

Ana's grip tightened. "What happened?"

"She got me a box to put all of it in and kept adding to it herself. She wanted me to know that I would never have to go hungry again. Next day she took me downstairs and asked if I wanted to help make the food. Everything that I learned was from her."

"I've never been very good at breakfast food," Ana said after they sat in silence for a while, both of them picking at their plates. Now all of Christian's food comments made sense. His insistence on her finishing her plate each time they ate, even if it was just a small handful of rice. It had felt condescending until she watched him clear his own plate. "Everyone always tells me that it's the easiest stuff and there's no way to get it wrong, but I just do. I either flip my pancakes too soon or too late so it's a soggy mess or overdone flapjack. Don't even get me started on my eggs. Dinner I can handle. But breakfast…"

"Maybe I can teach you," Christian said, shoulders slumping in relief when he realized that Ana wasn't going to bring it up any more than he wanted to.

"I won't be opposed but don't have any expectations."

Christian chuckled and leaned in to peck her lips. The rest of breakfast was spent peacefully eating the food that Christian had prepared, light conversation between the two of them.

* * *

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	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry this has been so late in the day but it's still Wednesday! and as promised here's the chapter. I just drove twelve hours from AZ to CA so needless to say I am tired and ready to get some sleep.**

 **I have been waiting for you guys to read this chapter FOREVER. I cannot wait to see everyones reactions. Enjoy :) :) :)**

* * *

"What are you doing the rest of the day?" Ana asked Christian. They were laying on the couch in the media room—yes, Christian Grey had an actual media room—where they had moved to after breakfast. Both of them were semi dressed, Christian in a pair of sweatpants and Ana in one of his many button down shirts despite Christian's reminder that she had a closet in the other room. She'd promptly replied that it was too far and pulled on the shirt, cheeky smirk firmly in place.

Ana had meant to leave right after breakfast but each time she moved to put on her clothes or open her mouth and announce her departure, Christian would be there with something new to do or pulling her in for a kiss that she could never refuse.

"I have some business to do in the office."

"Are you ever not working?" There was some action movie on the screen that Ana was barely paying attention to. She was half asleep, fully comfortable in the warm cocoon that was made up of Christian and incredibly soft blankets that Christian had draped over her from who knows where.

"I find myself working less and less when you are around. You're a terrible influence," Christian said, brushing some hair away from her face and pressing a kiss to her forehead. He seemed to be doing that a lot over the past few days, but Ana liked the warmth the action gave her and wasn't about to ask him to stop.

Ana giggled, feeling the beginnings of Christian's beard on her face. He hadn't shaved since Friday morning and it was starting to leave a sexy five o'clock shadow. He'd meant to do it today until Ana had caught him in the bathroom and insisted that he left it for the weekend. She loved the way it felt between her legs and when she cupped his cheek. She twisted in the blankets, ignoring the way that they tangled around her feet to press up against Christian, hands falling next to his shoulders to support herself as their lips met in a kiss.

"You are so beautiful," Christian said when they both came up for air.

Ana blinked owlishly, staring at Christian's gray eyes. She hardly noticed the color, more often noticing the feelings he left her with whenever their gazes locked. She'd never thought that gray was a very memorable color for eyes—until she met Christian Grey. His eyes were captivating.

"You don't need to compliment me," Ana said after a moment too long. "You've already got me in your bed."

"And now I've got you on my couch." Christian moved up, pushing her back until she was fully reclined on the couch. "I haven't had you in this room yet," Christian said, possessive eyes following just as possessive hands that mapped out Ana's body, unbuttoning her shirt as he went. He'd done this countless times but never seemed to get enough.

"Are you trying to sleep with me in every room in your house?" Ana asked breathlessly.

"It seems to be a worthy goal. I need to make sure that you remember this." He ducked down and pressed multiple kisses to her neck, lightly sucking on the skin.

"No hickies."

Christian pulled back, a full pout on his face. "Not even a small one? Really light."

"Christian, we've talked about this. I don't need to be putting makeup on my neck just for when I go to work, or be stuck wearing a scarf in doors."

"The whole point is that you don't do that. I want the world to see that you are mine."

Ana ignored the thrill that went through her belly at the dark look. He'd said a few things like this before, especially when Ana reminded him not to leave any marks on her neck once he had managed the first time. Being so unexperienced herself, she hadn't realized what he was doing the first time that he started sucking on her neck, all of her thoughts going to how good it felt. Then she looked in the mirror an hour later to see a dark mark that no clothing would cover. The rule had been swiftly implemented after that.

Christian exhaled a sigh of frustration and ducked his head, latching on to the skin above her breast and sucking hard. It was their compromise. He could mark her how he wanted anywhere that she could wear clothes to cover up. He attacked the skin with a vengeance, as he always did when Ana said no to the neck, as if he could make up by giving her as many hickies as he could manage before getting otherwise distracted.

Explosions sounded from the television as another shooting scene took place between the characters, blocking out the sound of the media room door opening as well as the two pairs of footsteps that followed.

"Christian, darling," a woman's voice cut through Ana and Christian's awareness, both of them tensing at the new voice that was very much not Taylor or Gail. Two people who were off for the weekend and knew better than to ever walk in to a room that the two of them were in without knocking and waiting for a response. "Oh my—"

"Mom!" Christian pushed away from Ana then seemed to realize that her shirt was open at the same moment she did, both of them sitting up, hands going to her shirt and pulling until she was covered. Christian took it a step further and wrapped the blanket that had been covering them around her shoulders.

"I'm—I'm so sorry, Christian," said an older looking woman with brown hair. "I didn't realize you had company over."

Ana tucked the blanket tighter around her, still sitting awkwardly on the couch as she took in the scene in front of her. Christian was standing next to the couch, hands still hovering over her as if he debating a way to spirit her out of the room. On the other side of the couch stood two women, the one that was Christian's mother standing much closer to them with a look of surprise clear on her face, hands held out in the air. The other woman stood further back, but instead of looking surprised she only looked displeased, her eyes flashing from Christian to Ana then back to him again.

Both of them were incredibly beautiful but in entirely different ways. The one who had spoken had a warmth about her; her beauty coming through in the laugh lines around her face and the lightness in the way she carried herself. Ana could tell immediately that she was one of the rare souls whose insides matched their outsides. The other one however was what Ana thought of when it came to people with money. The type of person who was pretty, but knew where to put her money to be beautiful. It worked, but did nothing for the coldness in her demeanor as she eyed Ana.

"I—Mom, I didn't realize you were here. How long have you been here?" Christian floundered. He stepped even closer to Ana but his eyes stayed on his mother.

"We only just got here, Christian. We wanted to stop in and say hello and see if we could drag you out for lunch. We didn't mean to barge in like this—I expected to find you in your office but we heard noises coming from here." Grace blushed, eyes settling on Ana for just a moment. "I'm sorry to intrude on your space like this. I didn't see Taylor as we came up."

"You know I give him the weekends off, Mom."

"I know," Grace replied, face still red. She futzed with her purse, avoiding everyone's gaze until her face was a much more neutral color. "I just didn't realize that you would have someone here." She gave a smile to Ana, her shock and embarrassment seeming to have run its course and now the only thing that Ana could see on her face was happiness. She walked up to Ana, a pleased smile on her face, "I'm Grace, Christian's mother."

"Ana." Ana stuck her hand through a small whole in the blanket to shake. She offered up her own smile but knowing that her own face was still bright red.

"This is my girlfriend," Christian said when it became clear that Grace was expecting a bit more than Ana's small response. Ana hid her surprise by smiling up at Christian who was staring not at his mother, but at the other woman who was still standing against the wall. "And this is Elena, one of my mother's friends."

"Oh, please, don't be so formal Christian. I'm your friend too," Elena said. She offered Ana a smile that didn't seem to reach her eyes, not moving an inch from her position in the room.

"Elena and Christian go way back," Grace agreed, smiling at the two of them before her eyes returned to Christian. "How long have you two been dating and this the first time that I'm hearing about it?"

"Yes, please do tell." Elena said warmly, but her eyes told a whole other story as they stared cold daggers at Christian.

"Just a little while mother," Christian said, "now if you don't mind letting Ana and I…"

"Oh, yes! We'll let you get dressed and meet you in the living room. It was so nice to meet you Ana!"  
"You as well," Ana replied to Grace and Elena's back, the former ushering them both out the door. It closed with a thud, shoes clattering in the distance until the sound faded entirely.

Ana turned to Christian who stood with a grimace on his face. "I am so sorry."

Christian blinked. "Sorry? What are you apologizing for? This isn't something that either one of us could have prepared for."

"I know, but I know that this was definitely not something that you wanted to happen."

"It was bound to happen at some point," Christian said with a shake of his head. He held out his hand and pulled Ana to her feet, tucking the blanket back around her shoulders when it slipped. "The fact that this hasn't happened sooner is honestly a surprise. You've just made my mother's day. I'm not going to hear the end of it from Mia."

"How?" Ana followed Christian to the room that held Ana's closet full of clothes. She wasn't too happy to be strong armed into wearing them but also didn't know where her clothes were, nor did she want to show up downstairs in just Christian's clothes. The way she met Grace was already bad enough.

"My family thought I was gay."

"What?" Ana whirled on Christian, hands dropping to her side. "Your family thought you were gay?"

"You did your research on me, Ms. Steele. I know you heard that rumor a time or two."

"I mean, yeah, but that's the public, not your family."

"When you haven't brought a woman to a single event in your twenty-seven years of life, even your family starts to wonder."

"It's not like you brought a man." Ana pulled her hair in a ponytail and turned back to Christian fully dressed in a pair of jeans and a plain white t-shirt. "Have you?"

"No, Ana, I have not brought a man to dinner." Christian rolled his eyes and grabbed her hand as they headed back to his room.

She headed to the bathroom while Christian got changed in his own closet. Washing her hands, she frowned in the mirror when she saw a red mark lightly peeking out from the edge of her shirt. Pulling the V-neck a bit to the side she realized that Christian had been a lot more careless with the latest positioning of his hicky, leaving it slightly viewable if she wasn't careful with the way that her shirt lay.

"Really?" Ana asked when Christian walked into the bathroom looking for her. He was also in a pair of jeans and white t-shirt, his tight around the chest and arms, and would have immediately started a different conversation if Ana weren't still frowning at the light bruise in the mirror. She hoped it wouldn't become darker.

Christian walked over and grinned immediately when he noted what she was pointing at. He leaned down and kissed the side of her neck. "You said not on your neck."

"I _said_ where my clothes can cover it."

"Your clothes can cover it." Christian moved Ana's hands away so that they could examine it in the mirror when Ana's clothes were lying flat. "See?"

"Yeah, if I don't move an inch," Ana replied, tugging at it so that even more of the skin was covered. She wasn't really mad though and reassured Christian with an amused smile. "Cave man."

"Now they'll know that you're mine."

"Yeah, for like five seconds if they even notice it."

Christian huffed out an exhale, eyes staring intently at Ana's shirt where the mark was located. "Come on, my mother's waiting. She might like you to think that she's a patient woman who doesn't normally walk in to rooms without knocking, but our childhood tells a whole other story."

"Is she going to care?" Ana asked, following Christian out of his room.

"Care about what?"

"That, you know, I'm not really your girlfriend?"

"She's never going to know that you're not my girlfriend," Christian pulled them to a stop and lowered his voice. "Is this going to be a problem for you?"

"What? No, I just, I don't really know what to expect."

"For all intents and purposes, you are my girlfriend. That's all my mother needs to know.

"Isn't she going to ask questions?"

"If it does come up, we'll tell her the truth. You interviewed me and we hit it off."

Ana nodded, letting her thoughts settle in. "Should I know anything else?"

Christian considered her, an indecipherable expression crossing his face until he schooled it into his business face. "No. You'll be fine." He turned and continued walking.

"Wait, Christian!" Ana hissed, darting after him but it was too late and they were now standing at the top of the stairs. Grace and Elena had clearly been waiting for them, most likely with their eyes on the stairs as they immediately stood when Ana and Christian approached. Ana noticed how the other woman stood back, but didn't spend too much time on it as Grace pulled her into a hug.

"It is so nice to finally meet you! Christian has told me so much about you."

"Mom," Christian snorted. He placed a hand on Ana's back when she was released and stepped back into him. "Ana knows that I haven't said anything about her to you. She won't be offended."

"Christian! You're not supposed to say that."

"It's fine," Ana is quick to reassure. "Christian and I have been talking about it a lot and had a clear understanding of where we stood. Going public is a big decision for both of us."

"Going public!" Grace clasped her hands together, holding them up to her lips. Ana would have thought she'd said something wrong if it wasn't for the blinding smile that hid behind her hands, eyes shining. "What about just telling your poor mother?"

"I was going to tell you eventually," Christian said through gritted teeth.

"Yes, Grace," Elena cut in, nose turned up. "Clearly he wasn't even trying to tell us at all if we hadn't barged in on him."

Ana wrinkled her nose.

"I was going to tell you when we were ready," Christian defended, wrapping his arm around Ana's waist. Grace's eyes took in the whole motion, smile growing ever larger.

"Oh, please Christian you weren't going to tell us a single thing. Don't try and lie to your mother." Ana giggled and Grace looked positively delighted. "You must come to dinner next week! We have one every Sunday evening. I would invite you tonight but even I'm not that bad. Please come next week, I insist! Everyone will be so happy to meet you."

"Mom, leave her alone."

Instead of looking contrite, even more glee lit up her face. She clapped her hands together, emulating someone thirty years younger. "Oh, I just know everyone's going to love you."

"You barely know the girl, Grace," Elena cut in, eyes sizing Ana up and down.

"Oh, shush Elena." Grace waved her hand, not even looking back at her friend. "I've always been a good judge of character.

Christian made a choked sound.

"How long have you two been dating?" Grace carried on, pointedly ignoring the other two.

"Yes," said Elena, cold eyes resting on Ana, "Please tell."

Ana shifted uncomfortably, grateful when Christian answered, voice cold and full of warning. "We met about two months ago when she interviewed me at my office."

"I thought you didn't get involved with anyone at work," said Elena.

"Oh, hush." Grace smacked Elena's arm. "Christian hasn't been with anyone, he can hardly make rules like that for himself."

Ana shifted uncomfortably, wishing that she had talked to Christian a bit more about this so she would know how rude she'd be to try and duck out, or how exactly long to expect this conversation to go on for.

"Oh, don't worry, we'll get out of your hair," Grace said having clearly caught the look of discomfort. She smiled again, guilt settling in around Ana at the sheer glee in her eyes when she looked between Christian and Ana. "Don't forget to come to our dinner next Sunday."

"I'll try," Ana replied knowing that she would absolutely not try.

She gave Christian a kiss and hug before pulling Ana in for her own hug and kiss on the cheek.

Elena followed suit, hugging and kissing Christian, her hands resting on Christian's upper arms in a way that made Ana's skin crawl. Turning she offered Ana what could only be called a bitter smile. "Pleasure meeting you. Ana." She gave Christian a long look before following Grace out of the apartment, Grace calling out another cheerful goodbye as the elevator door closed.

"Christian I feel horrible," Ana said as soon as the doors were all the way closed.

"What? Why?" He was standing in the middle of the foyer where he could see the doors. Turning he walked back towards her, his face a lot more open than it had been a few minutes ago.

"Did you see the way that your mother looked at me? She loved me!"

Christian's lips quirked upwards. "That hardly seems to be a bad thing."

"It's a bad problem when I'm not actually your girlfriend and what the heck are you going to say when all of a sudden I'm no longer a part of your life or you don't take me to dinner or we never go public! 'Cause we're not."

"You don't need to keep reminding me that this isn't a real relationship Ana. I know just as well as you do." Frustration lined his face. "My mother will be fine. We'll tell her in a couple of weeks that we broke up and that will be it."

"Christian," Ana said in exasperation.

"Ana." He moved into the kitchen and poured two glasses of water, placing one in front of Ana before continuing, "You don't need to worry about it. Neither one of us expected this but it happened and it's my responsibility since it's my family. Besides, like you said, my mother loves you. That's not something to be disappointed about. You should see the way she treats some of the girls my brother brings home."

Ana took a sip of her water knowing that he was right but not able to push off all of the guilt at having actually met the woman and finding out that his entire family thought he was gay because he'd never brought a woman home before.

Christian placed his own glass down and slid onto the bar stool, motioning for Ana to do the same. "We good?"

She nodded, taking another sip of her water. "Who was that other lady?"

"Elena?"

"Unless I got her name wrong, yeah. How do you know her?" The lady might not have said much, but when she did it was more than clear that she was not pleased with Ana's presence.

"She's a friend of my mothers. She's the one that gave me my initial investment to fund GEH."

"I thought that your father gave you that investment?"

"No, it was Elena."

"I know I read about it being a friend, but I just always thought you meant your dad." Though now that Ana thought about it she realized he would have simply said his father, if that was who it had been. "You guys must be pretty close if she's the one that gave you that investment."

Christian shifted in his seat. "We're pretty close."

Ana considered Christian, unsure what to think about his reluctance to answer her questions. "She doesn't seem to like me."

"She didn't like that she didn't know you first."

Ana snorted, "Why would she meet me before I met your mother? If I was actually your girlfriend."

"It's nothing Ana. Don't worry about it." Christian stood, clearing their cups before Ana could say anything else. "Come, I know you have things to do today and I need to do some business eventually. I'll give you a ride home."

"You're not going to call Taylor to come drive me?" Ana asked, allowing the conversation to get brushed away with a suspicious look. Their conversation was over now, but her look promised that it would be revisited. Meeting the parents was the last thing that either one of them had wanted yet it happened and Ana was in agreement to just forget about it and go on with life as normal.

* * *

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	9. Chapter 9

**Alright guys... next installment! It is out as scheduled, though once again later in the day than I've updated before. Spent most of the day getting from Colorado back to California. Flew this time, no more long drives for a couple of more weeks ;) lol**

 **There might be a slight discrepancy in regards to Christian and his touch issues but I can't remember what I've written about it before and I'm too lazy to go back and check. Sorry in advance if there is, shouldn't be too big of a deal.**

 **And thank you so much for all the reviews! I love them all and love hearing what you guys have to think and how into the story you're all getting.**

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"Hey Ana, there's someone waiting for you. Said you have lunch plans?" Arnold said, leaning up against Ana's desk.

"What?" Ana popped her head up from the manuscript she'd been going over.

"There's a lady waiting for you at the front desk named Elena. Said you have lunch plans."

Ana had quickly learned that Arnold was the one who knew everything that was going on in the office at all time. Despite being the temporary office manager, he also doubled as the receptionist, not because he had to but because he enjoyed seeing the people that came in and out of their offices. Ana had no idea where he normally worked, or if he was just a temp.

"What does she look like?"

Arnold lifted a shoulder in a shrug. "I don't know. An older woman I would assume to be your mom if you didn't have a family photo on your desk." Arnold nodded at said photo, one of the rare ones that was of her, Ray and her mother from when she had graduated from high school. Ana wasn't one much more sentimentality but her mother had mailed her the photo along with apologies for not making it to her college graduation and Ana had found herself carrying it into work. "Do you not have lunch plans? Should I tell her to get lost? I mean you do know the woman right?"

"I think so… I'll take care of it." Ana stood, nodding her thanks to Arnold and making her way to the front office, a frown firmly if her suspicions over who was waiting for her were correct. She waved to Arnold who gave her a concerned look but otherwise didn't say anything else, moving further in to most likely gather his things for his own lunch.

Ana's frown intensified when she saw that her suspicions were correct. She hadn't been in the same room with her long, but she still recognized the woman that she had met that weekend. Elena stood in the middle of the lobby, eyes locked on Ana.

Ana slowed to a stop right in front of her. "Can I help you?"

"Yes," Elena lifted her nose and shouldered her purse. "Let's go. I have reservations that I don't want to miss."

"Uh, what?" Ana chased after the woman and pulled her to a stop outside the door, steering her to the right so they weren't blocking anyone. Elena scowled down at Ana's hand until she released her arm, hand going to wipe the area that Ana had touched as if it was contaminated.

Ana could only watch the movement with confusion and consternation, completely unsure of what was happening right now. "Are we meeting Christian or something?" She knew it was implausible, considering Christian would have alerted her but the entire situation was making no sense.

"No. I wanted to speak to you." Elena looked her up and down and whatever she saw only seemed to displease her further. "I have no idea what he sees in you."

"Sees in me? Christian?" Ana gaped. "It's a good thing that your opinion of me doesn't matter."

Elena gave Ana a pitying look. "Oh honey, you have no idea what's going on, do you?"

Ana took a small step back before catching the movement and forcing herself still, hating the condescension that was just reeling off this woman. Hating the feeling of being out of her depth. She had taken pride in knowing exactly where she stood in relation to Christian and disliked being made to feel like she wasn't. She wasn't sure she stood in regards to this woman

"Girls like you, don't get men like Christian Grey."

Ana relaxed. This woman had no idea what Ana's relationship was with Christian, which gave her a leg up. She had no idea what this woman's problem was but she wasn't about to let her walk all over her just because she knew Christian. He could get mad at her later, but it wasn't going to change how Ana would respond now. "Then I guess it's a sad day in hell, when girls like me, do in fact get Christian Grey."

Elena scowled. She had seen the flicker of realization in Ana's eyes and did not like the self-assured confidence it had given her. She stepped closer, her heels making her tower over Ana, Ana straightening her spine and glared, meeting her ice blue eyes head on. "You're only going to get hurt the longer you stay with him. Do yourself a favor and leave him now."

"See, I'd like to believe that you're just looking out for him, but really you just sound jealous. Don't like the fact that Christian Grey is finally paying attention to someone that isn't you?" The words felt weird coming out of her mouth but knew her assumption was correct, Elena's reeling expression making that clear.

Elena curled forward, lips twisted mockingly, "You're not the first woman Christian has had. Did he tell you that?" Elena patted Ana's shoulder, smirking when Ana ripped it away, taking multiple steps back so that they were no longer within touching distance.

"Who do you think you are?"

"I'm the woman that Christian listens to, so I'm telling you now, as a favor, leave him before you start thinking that he's in love with you. Or worse, you fall in love with him. Christian Grey leaves trails of heart broken women in his wake and doesn't even pause to look back. Don't be the next one. Men like him don't love."

With a final look, Elena stepped away, turned, and headed back into the light drizzle, umbrella coming up with a snap.

Fury and confusion danced in Ana's veins as she pulled her phone out and clicked on Christian's contact.

"I'm in the middle of something Ana. Is this important?"

"Important? I don't know. Weird? Yes. That lady that's apparently friends with your mother—and you; Elena? She just showed up at my work telling me that I need to break up with you."

She heard movement on the other side, hushed apologies, and a door closing, Christian's voice returning much louder. "Elena just showed up at the publishing house?"

"Yes." Ana waved at Arnold who was standing in the lobby once again, sending her looks of concern. He nodded at Ana's reassurance, but still slid behind the receptionist desk after a short conversation with the other man sitting there.

"I'm coming to collect you now. Where are you?"

"I'm at work Christian, but I only have an hour lunch break and it started fifteen minutes ago."

"I'll be there in five minutes and have you back in time. Wait for me. Okay?"

"Okay." Ana breathed out and hung up the phone.

Her heart was still beating fast, fingers twitching as she waited for Christian to show up. She could go back inside but then she would have to talk to the other people, mainly Arnold, and she needed to work out what exactly she was thinking before that.

Seven minutes later Christian pulled up in front of her, ignoring the honking behind him. Ana didn't wait for him to get out of the car, sliding in as soon as he was there, Christian immediately hitting the gas and flying around the block.

"Tell me what happened."

Ana did.

"How did she know where I worked Christian?" Ana asked when she finished up her story.

"What? I didn't tell her, if that's what you're thinking."

"I think it's rather odd that a woman I don't even know somehow knew where I worked.

"I didn't tell her." Christian's jaw clenched.

"Then how the heck did she know where I worked? Am I going to have to expect a house call as well when she finds out we didn't break up?" The thought hadn't occurred to her until just that moment but the second it did, she couldn't get it out of her mind. "Who the hell is that woman and why does she think she has any authority over you Christian? That's creepy as fuck! Does she always do this type of shit? Who does that!"

"What?" Christian laughed. Ana glared harder when she realized that Christian wasn't taking her as seriously as she had thought. Christian only looked back at her with an amused grin.

"Christian, that's creepy! Some old woman who's friends with your mom and yeah I get it, is friends with you too, but who the heck thinks they can go up to the girl that her friend is dating and warn her off!"

"People do that all the time."

"People their own age! Their brothers or sisters! Not your mother's friends!"

"Ana, relax, Elena didn't mean any harm."

What had originally been anger for Christian now flared on her own behalf at Christian's belittling statement. "If she didn't mean any harm then she wouldn't have shown up at my work and threatened me."

"I would hardly call that threatening."

"Then what would you call it? A friendly conversation? That wasn't friendly advice. That was a warning. Like—like she thought she had authority over you." Ana's eyes widened as she looked at Christian anew. "Does she know about your previous relationships?"

Christian gritted his teeth. Pulling into an empty parking lot Christian shut off the car and glared at the steering wheel. "Yes. She does."

"You tell your mothers friends about your relationships but not your own mother?" Ana asked, aghast.

"I—like I said, I'm close to her."

"Close enough to tell her about your friends with benefit relationships but not your own family?"

"She's the one that normally helps me find them," Christian reluctantly admitted, twisting in his seat and grabbing Ana's hand.

She'd learned quickly that when they were arguing he liked to be touching her physically in some way, whether to anchor himself or to let him know that she was still there she was unsure. The warmth of his hand grounded her a bit too and she would never say no to Christian Grey touching her, especially in a way that had nothing to do with sex.

Christian's statement though had her reeling. "She helps you find the girls?"

"I'm a very busy man, Ana, and I can't spend my time trying to meet people who will join a mutually beneficial agreement with me."

"You did with me."

"Our circumstances were very out of the ordinary."

Ana tilted her head in reluctant acknowledgement.

"Elena helps to find the girls and ensure my complete privacy before introducing us."

"She's your pimp," Ana said blandly. "How did that even start?" Ana wrinkled her nose as she pictured it. "Did you just walk up to her thinking oh, Elena, my mother's friend. She must be really good at finding discrete women I can fuck."

"No, Ana," Christian said in displeasure, "that's not how it started." He linked their fingers, tugging her closer so that she was leaning against the center console, her hand in his lap.

"So how did it come up?"

"Elena… offered."

That had Ana drawing up short again.

"I have always had trouble with people touching me, I know that you've noticed."

Ana nodded. He'd never explicitly told her not to touch him or where but she'd grown aware and stopped attempting contact in certain areas, only asking for a minor explanation that led to her knowledge of how he was more comfortable with touches when his chest was covered or, he was in control of it, like chest to chest, no hands anywhere close.

"It's not anything new. No one is allowed to touch me, they haven't for as long as I could remember and it makes it incredibly frustrating when I do… want to be touched." Ana sandwiched Christian's hands between her own and pressed a kiss to the back of his. Christian gave her a soft, hesitant smile. "Elena offered a way that I could have a relationship of sorts without any of those pressures."

Ana raised a brow. There was a whole lot that he hadn't said, but she would let it go for now. "Have you ever been in a real relationship?"

"No and neither have you," Christian said with a pointed look warning her to carry on with that topic of conversation though there was also a bit of smug pride in there that made Ana roll her eyes. He'd made it a point to let her know how pleased he was that he was her first and only.

She'd taken the smirk right off his face when she said that he wouldn't be her only for long. It had resulted in a long and hard round of sex that was incredibly satisfying but Christian hadn't said another word other than claiming her as 'his' as many times as he could. She had let him until the very end when they were cooling down in bed to remind him that she didn't belong to anyone, let alone him. He hadn't been too pleased with that.

"I might not have been in a relationship but that doesn't mean I'm not open to one. You, however, are not."

"I'm not the relationship type."

Ana wrinkled her nose. "Yeah, I've heard that before but I never really got what that means. You don't like people, you know you won't put yourself out there, or you simply don't want to?"

"I'm not capable of forming the attachments that are necessary in a relationship."

Ana stared at Christian. It took her a moment to realize that he was complete serious. "How do you think that?"

"It's true, Ana and I don't need you arguing the opposite."

Ana twisted her lips into a wry smile. "Sounds like I'm not the only one who's had this conversation with you before."

"No, and you won't be the last."

"Why do you think you can't do relationships?"

"I am not capable of love." This conversation was getting way too heavy to have during her lunch break in a Starbucks parking lot. "It's why I make sure that everyone I'm with knows exactly what to expect. I don't want them thinking there's a chance of anything else. I can't give love and never will be able to."

"Why do you think that?" Ana asked softly.

Christian shifted. He that tried to pull away but Ana latched on to his hand, keeping him from moving. "It's a simple fact Ana. Not something that needs to be dissected."

"Kind of sounds like it." Every time she was with Christian she seemed to learn something new and they weren't always positive. It left her heart twisting in agony for the man that sat before her.

"Ana."

"Christian." Ana glared at him until it became clear that he wasn't going to say anything else. Huffing, she said, "Look, we're getting off track and I need to get back to work. What are you going to do about Elena?" Her annoyance resurfaced as she thought about the woman.

She still didn't know everything, but her original ambivalence towards the woman had long since fizzled out. When she had met Elena her main concern was on Grace, the actual mother. She'd been a bit flustered with her dismissive attitude, but Grace had been in top spirits so hadn't thought much of it. Now that had changed. She was looking more and more ugly in Ana's eyes.

Christian started the car again and pulled back into the road. "Don't worry Ana. I'll call and talk to her. She won't bother you again."

"She shouldn't have bothered me in the first place." They pulled to a stop outside of Ana's work, never having gotten very far in the first place. Ana supposed she would be eating one of the granola bars in her purse for lunch today.

Christian grit his teeth, but Ana knew that he agreed, he just didn't want to argue again. It made Ana more mad to know that he wasn't immediately on her side though she was sure he would claim the opposite. "I'll talk to her."

"How did she know where I worked?" Ana asked, the question having nagged on her since Elena first showed up.

"She probably ordered a background check like I did. They are common practices in our circle."

"Am I going to have to worry about her showing up here again?"

"Ana," Christian squeezed her arm, "I'll talk to her. She won't bother you again."

"You do that," Ana nodded her head, lips pressed together as her eyes searched Christian's own. "I'll see you." Getting out of the car, Ana made sure to slam the door behind her, not turning back even when he called her name.

* * *

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	10. Chapter 10

**This is my shortest chapter yet but I hope you can all forgive because of the questions it answers ;) Switched things up a little bit for this one.**

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"Is the girl still not talking to you?" Elena asked, perched on the edge of his couch, legs crossed.

It was a position he'd seen thousands of times, used to get him aroused the second she adopted it with the way that it showed off her legs. Now it just annoyed him. They hadn't been sleeping together for years, but Elena was always trying to get him back into bed no matter how many times he insisted it wasn't going to happen. He brought his phone to his head and dialed . He'd been calling her since yesterday when he'd dropped her off, immediately knowing that it was the wrong decision but she had work and so did he.

"Just let it go, Christian. Obviously she's a lot less mature than you thought when you got into this… situation with her."

"Relationship, Elena. Relationship." Christian said with a glare. He knew that if there was anyone he could explain what was happening with Ana it would be Elena. That had been what he'd planned to talk to her today during lunch that they had every Wednesday. Then Tuesday came along with a call from Ana. "Anastasia is my girlfriend and I won't have you discounting that just because you don't like it."

"Girlfriend, really Christian?" Elena sighed disappointedly. "Do you really think this will end well? People like us don't get girlfriends or boyfriends. That's just not our life."

"Maybe I've decided to try something new."

"Trying something new is a scene in the play room. Not fooling a girl into thinking you're capable of getting into a relationship with her. You're only going to confuse the poor thing and have yet another woman trailing after you; except this time you don't have a contract to tear up."

Christian's ears burned knowing that she was right, but just like everything that had occurred with Ana, he hadn't been able to stop. Everything about her drew him to her and he was helpless to escape her thrall.

At first she had seemed like every doe eyed women that walked into his office hoping that for some reason she would stand out. She had pulled herself together quickly as almost everyone else did, if they'd even had a moment. Most people came into his office knowing that they couldn't waste their or his time hoping for the unattainable.

Yet with Ana, things had been different. He was drawn to her voice and eyes, listening intently to each question she gave and answered, desperately trying to draw out more. The idea of her working in the same office was a blessing and a curse. Even now he wished that she was here with him so that he could be with her at all times, never need to pick her up from another office, even if it was close by. Even if he was now in the process of acquiring it.

Every time he was with her, things happened that he hadn't planned and instead of feeling frustrated and like things were out of his control he felt the complete opposite. Like it was the plan for things to be unplanned. That maybe he didn't need to control every step because the surprise that came from it would be worth it. Meeting Ana had been a hell of good one.

She brought something out him in he didn't know he wanted. He didn't know what it was about that woman but he kept finding himself revealing more and more without a thought. Next thing he knew she had practically his entire life story. He would find himself looking into her guiles eyes, his mouth would open, and his past would just pour out.

He might have been the first man that she had sex with, but she was his first in many ways as well. Sometimes he found himself thinking about how much more she was to him than he ever would be for her. Of how he wouldn't be her last and he hated the feeling that it left him with. He would console himself with the fact that while he might not be her only one but he would certainly be her best.

He just wanted to make sure that she remembered him like he knew he was going to remember her. Every time they were together they did something new. Things Ana didn't even realize were completely unique to him and why they stood out more than they ever would for her.

Having sex in his bed. Having sex anywhere in his apartment _but_ the playroom. Him picking her up from work and talking to her about his day. Anytime that a submissive had been over in the past it was under a strict timeline with her always driving herself to his place in the car that he had provided. Another large difference between Ana and the women of his past though in that aspect he wished she would take after them a tad more. He hated the way that Ana refused any and all of his gifts, but most of all the car. All he wanted was to make sure that he knew she was safe.

He had never let anyone as close to him as he did Ana, but he couldn't find it in himself to regret it. Ana had met his mother, something that he would have tried to prevent in its entirety but something that once occurred, he was not displeased about. If anyone deserved to know Ana, it was Grace, the woman who had taken him in and showed that kindness did actually exist. A trait that Ana emulated.

Christian wished deeply that Elena had not been there at the meeting.

"Did you not think I would find out," Christian asked, returning his phone to his pocket when Ana' didn't picked up once more. He refused to feel anything about it and focused on what was happening in front of him. It was part of the reason he was such a good CEO. The ability to delegate not only the many tasks that landed on his desk each day, but to delegate his feelings so that he never treated anyone unjustly for something unrelated to them.

"It didn't matter if you found out," Elena replied dismissively but Christian could see the burst of annoyance in her eyes from Ana ratting on her. Christian couldn't be more pleased.

"You can't scare Ana into submission like she's some sub. She has no reason to be scared of you and no reason to think twice about you. In fact, even if she was a sub she would have done the right thing by telling me because no way is it your business what is happening between me and my subs."

"But that's just it," Elena stood, eyes flashing with fury, "she's not your sub! I have let this go on for too long. I understood after you let Suzannah go that you needed some time. You wanted something different, you've had the same type of girl for the past half a decade. I figured you would come to me when the time was ready and I'd send you a girl who was taller, or maybe had brown eyes instead of blue. Heck, I'd even send you a redhead! Then, next thing I know, I'm out getting lunch with a dear, dear friend of mine and we decide to stop by her sons briefly because she hadn't heard from him in a while to find him with not by himself as he's supposed to be, but with another woman! I would understand a one-night stand Christian, but a girlfriend? What on earth are you thinking? Or is that just it, you're not thinking at all."

Christian leaned over his desk, eyes dark with fury. "What this is Elena, is none of your business."

Elena scoffed. "Please, Christian. Every woman you interact with is my business."

Christian straightened and stepped closer to Elena, using his height to his advantage. He still towered over her despite the heels that she was wearing. It was a move that Elena had liked to use on him when he was younger, before he had grown himself, and continued to use by making sure that he was on his knees whenever they were in a scene together.

It wasn't something that he liked to do often, he saw others using their height to their advantage all around him, especially in the male dominated world that he worked in. Employers towering over their assistants as they had them fetch coffee or a male board member stepping closer and peering down at the women that he claimed to be equal to, but showed what he really saw every time he made sure that she had to look up at him.

"Not this one," Christian said back, taking a small amount of pleasure and forcing away the self-disgust when he saw the way Elena's eyes wavered.

"Please," Elena moved back and stood taller, "you need someone like me to be looking after you. What do you think is going to happen with this… _Anastasia_?"

"I think that it's none of your business."

"Christian, darling," Elena replied, switching tactics, "all I'm trying to do is look out for you but I can't do that if you won't help me.

"I don't care what you think you're doing, Elena. I need you to leave Anastasia and me alone. Do you understand me?"

"You don't need to be so domineering." Elena waved a hand in the air dismissively, knowing that she'd overstepped but Christian doesn't budge. She picked up her purse that she'd left on the couch. "Come now, let's go get lunch."

"I won't be doing lunch this week Elena."

Elena froze. "Oh, please, don't be so dramatic Christian. It was just a little misunderstanding between me and your girlfriend."

"A misunderstanding is not you approaching Ana at her place of employment as if you had a right to talk to her. How did you even know where she worked?"

"You know I always run background checks on all of your potential subs," Elena replied dismissively.

"Ana," Christian said in a hard voice, "is not a potential sub."

"Well I know that now." A light laugh and another flutter of her hand.

"No. You knew that before when I introduced her to you and Grace as my _girlfriend_. What you did was a power play and I do not appreciate it. As your friend or as a dominant."

Elena laughed long and hard. "Oh, Christian, Christian." She walked closer and ran her hands up Christian's arms, fingers dancing when they got close to his no-go area before yanking them away with another laugh. "You have no idea what game is being played, do you?"

"It's time for you to leave Elena." Christian glared, and stepped back, refusing to say anything else. He knew that he'd given himself away though the second that he said those words, Elena's smile turning pitying, but her eyes mocking.

Christian hated not knowing what she was talking about. He had no problem reading everyone else that came into his life as long as they weren't close to him. The second he was across the room from a potential new partner he would know their major tells and what they wanted. But when it came to the people close to him, he always had a hard time reading them. Elena the most because while everyone helped him with their words, Elena seemed to get a sick sense of pleasure when she realized that Christian had no idea of what she was talking about.

"Lunch next week?"

Christian didn't respond and Elena only smirked and walked out of his office. Christian waited until he was sure she would be in the elevator and long gone when he pressed the button on his phone that rang Andrea.

"Yes, Mr. Grey?"

"Elena Lincoln is no longer allowed on immediate access list."

Andrea's response came after a short pause. Christian had a very small list of people that he allowed to see him without needing an appointment and it had never changed in the time that Andrea had worked there. "Yes, Sir. Shall I revoke her access to the elevator?"

Christian almost said no, catching himself at the last minute. "Actually, yes Andrea. Thank you."

"You're welcome, sir."

Christian turned in his seat and stared out the window, his thoughts immediately returning to Ana and the weekend that they had spent together. The boat had been his own idea from one too many late nights at his piano, staring at the couch he'd taken Ana on her very first night there. He hated the fact that she was always willing to come over any time he called, but refused to spend the night. He had multiple scenes planned out for waking her up nice and slow in the morning, none of which he'd been able to enact due to her stubborn refusal to use the guest room.

He had been thinking of other places he would like to take her, to feel her warm around him as he came inside her, many of which had to be dismissed for simple practicality. She didn't work at GEH and he did not need any rumors flying when Ana entered his office once again no matter how discreet Andrea was.

Christian's thought flew back to the night after he took Ana out on the Sound. He had meant for Ana to spend the night, it had been part of why he made sure to tire her out on the boat ride and continued to when they got back to Escala. What he hadn't counted on was tiring himself out. Ana hadn't said anything about waking up in his bed but he could tell that she was surprised when she first woke up and realized where she was. Christian always had a strict rule about women sharing his bed with him. Yet, like everything that was Anastasia Steele, she blew that idea completely out of the water.

The first night that she had slept beside him had been a fluke. The entire night had been a fluke if he was being completely honest with himself. He had let her stay because she passed out before he could say anything else and he was more than ready to talk with her in the morning. He hadn't planned on falling asleep when he laid out beside her but then the next thing he knew he was blinking awake to sunlight in his eyes after one of the soundest night's sleep he had in his memory.

He hadn't thought twice about it but apparently he should have if the other night was any indication. He'd woken up just as rested, not waking once in the middle of the night to night terrors, his piano staying silent for once.

Christian was more than eager to see if both times had been coincidences or Ana wove even more magic over him than he had originally known.

Reaching for his phone once more Christian pressed redial, unsurprised when her voice mail clicked on. "Ana, it's Christian. Please call me back when you get this message." He wasn't pleased with Elena's actions but maybe he could use this to his advantage.

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	11. Chapter 11

**This chapter was not as heavily edited as others since I wrote in an entirely new section so forgive for the mistakes. Hope you enjoy. :)**

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"What are you doing here?" Ana frowned at Christian. He stood in her doorway looking just as attractive as ever, wearing a dark blue button down shirt, his hair looking even messier than normal.

"I wanted to talk to you." Christian straightened from where he'd been leaning against the doorway.

Ana had taken a while to answer having realized that it was him the moment she saw his head of hair in the doorway. She hadn't been able to see anything else since he'd been resting it against the door making Ana wonder how long he had stood there before finally knocking. "So you just show up where I live when I've already had problem with people stalking me with information that they should not know?"

Christian winced. "I was honest about the background check."

Ana harrumphed but turned and let him in.

"I meant to pick you up at work but you'd already left by the time I got there," Christian said, trailing Ana into her apartment. It was his first time there and he looked around with interest. Ana kept it fairly clean, but right now there were a few extra jackets tossed haphazardly on various surfaces.

"How'd you know that?"

"Your car wasn't there."

Ana relaxed, realizing she was a lot tenser about this then she had thought. She was completely expecting him to say that he'd walked in and asked, or worse, had sent in Taylor. She'd already had enough questions to fend off after the Elena debacle and then her own subsequent disappearance and fifteen-minute late re-entry from her lunch break. The last thing she needed was anyone else questioning her about Christian.

"I went home early." She sank into the couch, Christian taking the chair across from her; much to Ana's relief.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Ana resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "It was just a slow day and the editor that I mainly reported to wasn't there so they just let me leave for the weekend early. Most of us left since a good chunk of the editors were at a retreat this weekend and left this morning."

Christian nodded. "Can we talk?"

"I assume that's why you're here."

"No, I don't just mean now. I mean talking in general. I don't like it when you ignore me Ana."

Ana leaned back into the couch, cringing a little. "Yeah, I am sorry. I just didn't know what to say to you exactly."

"I try to be honest with you but there are some things in my life that I need to keep private. Can you respect that?"

Ana stared at him, reading what was left unsaid. Him asking for her to not dig into his life anymore. To respect the boundaries he'd set and let her questions remained unasked. "I can respect that."

Christian exhaled, relief and surprise flickering in his eyes, most likely having expected the conversation to take a lot longer than they had.

"Did you talk to Elena?" It was after all the main point of their argument. She could not dig into his life, but she still needed to make sure that she was safe.

"I did. She won't be bothering us anymore."

Ana pursed her lips. "How involved in your life is she?"

Christian shifted. "I got lunch with her at least once a week but that will not be happening anymore."

Ana wanted to smirk but couldn't even do that. She disliked the fact that they were even that close in the first place. Nothing about that woman left Ana with a good impression. "As long as I don't get any more surprises."

"You won't."

Ana nodded and motioned towards her TV. "Do you want to watch a movie?"

A pleased smile grew on Christian's face and he nodded his agreement, much to Ana's surprise. He was always the one that insisted on a formality that Ana could never be bothered with but went along with if it made him more comfortable. Christian stood and moved over to where Ana sat on the couch.

"What do you want to watch?" she asked, picking up the TV remote. "I only have Netflix."

"Whatever you want."

"A Series of Unfortunate Events it is then," Ana replied. "I'm on season two so you're going to have to start where I am."

Christian stared at her, letting out a bark of laughter. He pulled Ana into his side and placed the blanket that Ana left on the back of the couch over their laps. "Only you Ana."

"You're the one who didn't answer me so you get to watch what I want to watch." She shrugged and nestled further into his side. "Don't worry. I'll explain what's going on."

"I'm so grateful for your generosity."

"You should be. Now shush, it's starting."

* * *

Ana knew that Christian was in bed with her the moment that she woke up. She had kept waiting for him to announce that he'd be leaving or that Taylor was outside to pick him up. She had even given plenty of openings herself for the man to take if he was feeling some rare form of propriety. Yet each time she said something he would hum his agreement or change the topic and they would go back to watching the TV show.

Ana hadn't been very far from the end of season two, which left Christian mainly confused about all the characters that had been introduced episodes earlier. As soon as it was over Ana had expected Christian to make his goodbye but instead he'd turned to her and requested to start at episode one so that he could see all of it. Ana had agreed out of pure shock, Christian never being the type of man who seemed very interested in pop culture.

So they had. They watched one. Then another. And another until Ana was leaning with her head on the side of the couch, legs stretched across Christian's lap. Soon her eyes were staying closed longer than they were open and soon she was drifting off to sleep. She'd woken slightly when she felt Christian move her into his arms and had registered when he slipped into her bed behind her instead of giving her a soft kiss goodbye.

"You're still here," Ana said once she had opened her eyes. Christian had been awake for who knows how long, just staring at her. Ana rolled her eyes but didn't comment.

"I can leave if you want."

"You've already stayed the night. Breakfast will hardly make a difference."

Christian chuckled, following her out of bed and into the kitchen.

Ana eyed him slightly with distrust but gave up when she realized how fruitless that would be. Christian did what Christian wanted and spending the night didn't impose on her. She decided not to think on it, just as she had the other morning she'd woken up in Christian's bed. Granted, that day had been a lot easier, Ana going home freaking out about meeting his mother over where she'd slept.

"What kind of cereal do you want?" Ana asked, peering into her cupboards even though she knew exactly what was inside of them. "We have honey nut cheerios and lucky charms."

"I've never had lucky charms."

Ana faced Christian her mouth agape. "You've never had lucky charms?"

"…No."

Ana pulled out the box. "Then I guess we know what you're having." She took out two bowls and lined them on the counter. She didn't eat lucky charms often herself, instead choosing to make a protein shake in the morning that she could eat on the go. Offering dry cereal to Christian Grey was bad enough. She wasn't going to offer a protein shake as well to a man that had a beautifully laid out breakfast placed in front of him each morning.

"This is good," Christian said once he had taken a bite.

"The marshmallows are my favorite part," Ana admitted around her own mouthful. "I'm surprised it's not too sweet for you?"

"You don't think I have a sweet tooth?" Christian asked, lips quirked upwards.

"I've never seen you eat anything sweet."

"You should have seen me growing up. I was a little cookie monster."

Ana laughed. "Your mother must be so proud now, seeing how healthy you are."

"She's certainly not displeased. Now she jokes that she needs to fatten me up." He patted his stomach. He'd yet to put a shirt on, his delicious six pack on display just for Ana.

Ana looked a bit longer than strictly necessary, grinning impishly when she looked at Christian again. "Well, you certainly show the results of all that hard work." She hadn't been allowed to touch his stomach yet, but looking at it was almost just as good. Ana swallowed. "I doubt your sweet tooth can even compare to mine. When I was younger my mother and I would always bake together, one of the few things I can get right in the kitchen. Give me an oven, and I'm good to go, but anything on the stovetop and chances are high I'm going to burn it down."

"Was your mother a good baker?"

"Oh, no," Ana shook her head. "There was a reason that I didn't stay at my mom's house very often. She wasn't very good at taking care of herself, let alone another kid, but she always liked the idea of being able to do it. She'd read a recipe to me and then I'd do the baking."

"So you can figure out a cookie recipe but not a cooking one?" Christian asked, taking another bite of his cereal. He moved his legs forward and pressed them against Ana's feet.

She tucked hers between them, grinning when Christian flinched when he felt how cold they were but didn't move away. "There is a huge difference between baking and cooking. Baking I put it all in to a bowl and then shove it in the oven. If I have to do something after that it's frosting it or something. Cooking you have to sauté and then do the noodles and make sure they're soft enough but don't forget about the sauce, and what if I want something on the side, that's a whole other pot that I have to think about." A thought occurred to Ana. "Is it true that if you throw a noodle onto the ceiling and it sticks, it's done?"

"I have not tried."

Ana pouted. "Well, you're boring." She stood, and put her now empty bowl into the dishwasher—another fantastic feature she'd been looking for when apartment hunting. "I can make muffins. They're not dessert."

Christian perked up, clearly interested. "What kind?"

Ana peered into her fridge and grinned. "Blueberry. My favorite." She started setting out the ingredients as Christian stood and put his own bowl away without Ana prompting.

"Do you need any help?"

Ana nodded towards a binder that she had just pulled out. "You can read the instructions to me if you want."

Christian pulled the book towards him and pulled it open, flipping through it until he landed on the right page. "Is this your old recipe book?"

"It's actually Ray's old recipe book. He gave it to me when I went to college in the hopes of making sure I wasn't only going to be eating out every day. Those are the recipes that got us through our childhood. Neither one of us are much of cookers."

Christian watched as Ana started measuring out flower and putting it into a large bowl, all the other ingredients laid out next to her. It was a tip that Grace had taught Christian as well. To get out all the ingredients beforehand so he didn't have to go searching and also knew that he had them all. "What was your mother like?" Christian asked. "I didn't realize that she was still in the picture."

Ana tilted her head, thinking back to all the conversations that she'd had with Christian about her family and realized that most of them centered around Ray and what they had done during her childhood. He'd met Ray briefly at her apartment, and knew that Ana had gone to eat with him after graduation but Ana had never said that her mother would be joining. There wasn't even a picture on any of Ana's walls in her apartment. Only the one that she had left at work.

Ana sifted together all of her dry ingredients. "I'm not very close to her," she finally said. It wasn't that she didn't mind talking about her, but more that the subject didn't come up a lot. She wasn't the only kid from a divorced family and once it had been established everyone moved on. If people started talking about their parents, she would talk about her dad. "Ray's the one who really raised me and made sure that I stayed with him after the divorce. Not that my mom fought too hard."

Christian stayed silent. Ana couldn't tell if she was grateful or that or not. She was happy to be the one to decide how much she wanted to say, but the other part of her wanted to know how much Christian wanted to know. Did he care enough about her, to wonder about her past and what made Ana, Ana? Ana viciously shoved those thoughts to the side and shared stories about how many cake recipes they had messed up together until her mother became the designated recipe readers.

"It's not just because she sucked," Ana grinned as she remembered the face of one of her stepfathers when he tried their over salted cake. "She would just use the wrong ingredients or think if she forgot one that it would be totally fine. But me, I could not for the life of me read them right! It would say teaspoon and I'd do tablespoon, no matter how many times I reread teaspoon. There was just no connect." She shook her head. "Don't worry though. I've got a pretty good enough handle on it so far. Haven't done that mistake in a while. I almost have this entire recipe memorized."

"Then what am I doing reading this for you?"

"I said almost." Ana widened her eyes. "What's your favorite thing to make?"

"Mac n' cheese."

Ana pursed her lips. That was the last thing she had expected Ana to say. "Kraft's mac n' cheese?"

Christian looked embarrassed but didn't deny. "I do make it from scratch sometimes. I did more when I was younger. Don't have the time anymore."

"Excuses, excuses," Ana shook her head in mock disappointment. She smiled at her filled muffin tray in front of her. "Done." Setting them inside the oven she set the timer and moved back towards the kitchen table, sitting on Christian's lap when he caught her hand and directed her there.

"It's one of the only good memories I have with my birth mom." Christian fingered a strand of Ana's brown hair. "She was always much more concerned about getting her next hit than ever worrying about me, but sometimes she'd remember that she had a kid and needed to feed him. I remember her standing at the stove with a dish towel over her shoulder and telling me all the fairy tales that she could remember. My favorite was always the Princess and the Pea."

"Princess and the Pea?"

Christian smiled. It was small and hardly there, but still a smile. A smile full of bitterness over what could have been and what was. A feeling that Ana knew well. "I always dreamed of being a prince. My goal was to one day have a life so luxurious that I would be able to feel even a pea underneath my mattress."

"And now you've built a palace in the sky."

Christian's eyes finally found hers though he didn't release the piece of hair between his fingers. "I suppose I did."

"Ray was my Grace," Ana suddenly said. Christian had shared her so much about his own life and suddenly she felt the desperate need to do the same. "I had him from the very beginning. Don't even remember a moment of my life when I didn't have him. My mom loves me. I know she does, but she never wanted kids and I always knew that."

Christian looked up sharply. "Did she tell you that?"

"No. Ray told me. I dug it out of him and I still know that he doesn't know if it was the right thing to tell me or not. Even I don't know. I'd had the theory my entire life—hard not to with how in and out of my life she was—but I finally broke down and asked Ray. I just wanted to know if it was true or not. Sometimes I'm glad I know and other times I think it would be better for me to keep on guessing. Ray though… I always knew Ray wanted me." Ana's gaze hardened. "Blood doesn't make family."

Christian pressed her to his chest. "No it does not."

"What about your siblings?"

"What about them?" Christian replied but didn't move, keeping his head resting on top of Ana's.

"They were adopted too right?"

Christian nodded. "Elliot was adopted when he was two. Both of his parents died in a car accident. Mia was from a teenage mother and Grace got her when she was a baby." There's a small smile on his lips as he thinks of his sister.

Ana knew he got along with his brother, at least what she had seen from their short interaction, but she had not heard a lot of his sister. His eyes flicked to Ana. "You're going to love her."

Ana blanched, shifting back on Christian's lap. "I'm not actually going to meet her," she couldn't stop herself from reminding him.

"My mother wasn't joking about that dinner invitation."

"That doesn't mean that we have to go."

"If we don't go now, my mother will keep harassing me until we do."

"That still doesn't mean we have to go. Just tell her I'm busy or something. I do have a life."

Christian side-eyed her. "Are you busy?"

Ana spluttered. "I could be!"

Christian laughed and pulled her in for a hard kiss.

It would be their first time having sex in Ana's apartment and of course they would have it on the dining table rather than in the bedroom. Not that Ana was complaining.

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	12. Chapter 12

**I kept switching up Elliot's name with Ethan's and really hope I caught them all.**

 **We have reached the dinner chapter :) Please read and review!**

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"Ana are you ready to go?" Christian asked, stepping into her apartment late on Sunday afternoon.

"Uh…" She glanced down at her pajamas that she'd been in all day and back at Christian. "Ready for what?"

"Dinner at my parents. You're not even dressed?"

Ana's eyes widened and she stepped back as Christian took a step inside and closed the door behind him, flicking the lock.

"Should I be?" Ana asked, letting Christian take her into his arms and welcoming his kiss.

"Yes. My mother is expecting us."

"I thought we talked about this Christian. I'm still not going. Just tell her I was busy or something."

"Ana, you do not know my mother like I do. If you don't come now she will hound me for days and years to come, even if we do break up, I'll never hear the end of it. Please," Christian drew her hands into his own, "I know this is asking a lot of you, but would you do me this favor?"

Ana pressed her lips together but nodded. She'd known she was going the second Christian showed up at the door and announced the reason he was there. "Just let me get dressed. How formal is this thing?"

She eyed Christian's button down shirt. If she hadn't seen his work attire before she'd accuse him of being fancy. Now she knew that what he was wearing was casual for him. She hardly saw him in anything else than slacks except the jeans he tended to wear around the house that always let Ana know exactly what Christian had in mind. The most casual she'd ever seen him outside of Escala would have been the day on his boat.

"Do you have a dress?" Christian asked, following Ana into her room.

She stripped out of her pajama pants and made her way over to her walk-in closet—another first for her. Every other time she'd had a dresser. "You didn't have Taylor bring me anything?"

"I figured you'd want to dress yourself," Christian said chagrined.

Ana laughed, pulling out a plum dress that was one of her favorites but she hardly wore due to being slightly too formal for work. "I'm so glad I've upgraded in Christian Grey's life to 'Capable of Dressing Oneself'."

"I just want you wearing all the best things. There's no reason that I shouldn't be allowed to spoil you."

Ana pointedly rolled her eyes, enjoying Christian's growl of protest. Slipping the dress over her head she moved into her bathroom and pulled her hair into a pony tail, knowing that it was way too unkempt to try and leave down. She loved her brown hair, but it had the tendency to frizz up with even a single drop of liquid. Something that wasn't exactly convenient in Seattle.

Christian stood in the doorway watching as she took out her makeup and brushed on a little blush and eyeshadow; finishing off with a wave of her mascara wand she turned and gave Christian a smile. "How do I look?"

"Beautiful." Christian replied, walking up and giving her a kiss on the lips. She pulled away, Christian's eyes immediately darting to her lips. He exhaled slowly. "You have enchanted me in every way."

Ana grinned and patted his upper arm, moving back into her room to collect her purse and shoes. "Ready?"

Christian led the way back to his car, opening the door for Ana.

"No Taylor?"

"Unless he's driving me, I typically go alone to dinner at my parents' house."

"I never understand your rules for a bodyguard."

"What do you mean?" Christian started the car and pulled out of his parking spot.

"Why is he only sometimes with you? Don't you need security at all times?"

"I always need security but even I want to have some privacy once in a while. We have a meeting everyday regarding safety for myself and those around me and take the proper steps to insure those while also making sure that no one is feeling like their toes are getting stepped on. Some places have a lower threat probability and I can therefore go without Taylor for both of our benefits. We have agreed that my parents' house for a family dinner is one of those since I am going—normally—from point A to point B, my parents live in a gated community and I know everyone who will be there."

"Huh."

"Any other questions, Ms. Steele?" Christian smirked at her.

"Are there cameras in Escala?"

"Why? Planning to steal something?" Christian waggled his eyebrows in a completely unexpected move that had Ana erupting into startled laughter.

"No," she replied once her laughs quieted to small giggles, "you know what I mean."

"Yes there are cameras in the penthouse. They're only in the main rooms, absolutely none in the bedrooms but no one monitors them. They are only for security purposes only if we would need to use them."

"Have you ever needed to use them before?"

Christian opened his mouth and closed, Ana immediately reading the tension in his arms.

"Yes," Christian replied, voice tense. "One of my previous—one of the woman I had a prior relationship with became obsessed with me and broke into my apartment to steal a few mementos, I suppose. They weren't very important, but…"

"But it's still terrifying to know that there was someone in your house that didn't belong there."

Christian nodded. "I've always had good security so the fact that someone was able to get through was highly alarming and the cameras were able to help us pinpoint how she was able to get in and what had been taken. I had never been happier with a purchase."

"I'm sure," Ana said with wide eyes. It was moments like these that Ana was grateful for her much more normal life where people didn't want things from her just because of the amount of money she had in her bank account.

"I take my safety and those around me very seriously."

Ana hummed her acknowledgement. Deciding it was time to change subjects she asked, "Where do your parents live?"

They were moving at a steady pace down the freeway in the opposite direction of Seattle.

"They have a house on the Sound so it will be about a half hour to get there."

They spend the rest of the conversation talking about his family and who Ana should know along with little facts about them.

"It's beautiful," Ana said as they pulled up the long driveway to what could only be called a mansion. "You grew up here?"

"Yep. Oh look, I told you that my mother was excited to see you."

Ana looked out the window, seeing Grace already outside and coming down the stairs. "Maybe she's just excited to see you."

"She never does that when it's only me. I bet she was looking out the window waiting for us to pull up. Imagine her disappointment if you hadn't been here with me." Christian grinned, a teasing glint in his eyes.

"Stop." Ana smacked his arm lightly and got out of the car.

"Ana, dear, I am so happy that you were able to make it." Grace pulled Ana into a huge hug, squeezing tighter when Ana wrapped her own arms around the woman. "I am so happy that you're here."

"Give Ana some space Mom. She's already going to have it bad enough when Mia sees her. Andrea had to field calls from both of you this entire week. I swear most of the time that she was picking up the phone it was Mia on the other line."

"Well we wouldn't have to bother your assistant now if you would actually pick up your phone," Grace replied, pulling Christian in for his own hug and kiss on the cheek. "Now come inside. Everyone's so excited to meet you. Dinner's all ready so we can get seated right away."

"Please tell me that you calmed Mia down."

"I make no promises Christian. You're the one that kept this girl from us." Grace squeezed Ana's hand that she'd latched onto during the walk up the stairs.

And with that they enter the house.

"Hi!" Ana is greeted immediately by a woman who looked to be about the same age as Ana, though about a head shorter and black hair cut into a bob cut. She pulled Ana into a hug. "I'm Mia, Christian's sister. I would say I've heard so much about you but that would be an absolutely lie because my brother has said nothing about you!"

"Okay Mia, let her go," Christian's voice came from Ana's side.

Mia huffed but did just that, pouting at her brother, then turning her full watt smile in Ana's direction. "I can't wait to hear all about you. I have so many stories for you about Christian that I'm sure you'd love to hear."

That caught Ana's interest and she immediately turned a mischievous grin towards Christian. "That sounds promising."

"Mia, no." He pulled Ana towards him. "This is exactly why you hadn't met Ana before this."

"If you had your way we wouldn't have met her at all," Mia replied.

"Alright, come on children," Grace said beside them, bustling the trio out of the entrance way. "Dinner's ready and we don't need to be standing here like we don't know what to do with ourselves. Your father, brother and his new girlfriend are waiting for us in the sitting room."

"Ana, you have to sit next to me." Mia grabbed Ana's hand and started pulling her ahead of the group.

"Mia, relax. You're not five," Christian cut in before Ana could say anything.

Mia pouted but let go, letting Christian move up next to Ana as they stepped into a formal looking room that Ana would have called a living room.

"Finally, Christian has decided to deem us with his presence," the familiar voice of Elliot said, catching Ana's attention.

"Be nice to your brother," Grace said, sliding by the group and moving into what Ana assumed was the dining room. A house this nice definitely had one, if not two.

"I'm always nice," Elliot replied looking back and forth between Christian and his now exiting mother.

The woman beside Elliot snorted, drawing Ana's gaze. "Elliot, don't delude yourself."

"Kate?" Ana stepped forward, drawing all attention to her. She fought the urge to cringe.

"Oh my god, Ana?" The redhead pulled Ana into a full hug, Ana returning it just as eagerly.

"Ana? The same Ana?" Elliot looked befuddled.

Christian nodded.

Elliot gave Ana a smile once Kate released her. "Huh, small world."

"You know Ana, Elliot?" Mia is the picture of anger.

"Yeah we met at a bar that Christian took me to in Portland. Said he wanted to meet up with a friend."

"And you didn't think to tell us when you realized that friend was a woman?" Mia shrieked, her anger now directed to her other brother.

"Children, children, settle down," said a calm voice from the corner of the room. The man moved forward and clasped Ana's hand, ignoring the glares that Mia was sending at both of her brothers. "I am Carrick, Christian's father. You must be Ana. We've all been looking forward to meeting you so much."

"Yes, yes," Mia cut in. "We're all happy to see Ana, now can we get some answers about how apparently Elliot knew who Ana was the whole time and didn't tell us."

"Well it's not like I knew Kate's Ana was Christian's Ana."

"Elliot," Kate said, shooting an amused glance at Ana, "You met me the same night that you met Ana."

Ana wished she could pull her to the side and talk to her but knew now was not the right moment.

"Oh, shit that was Ana." Elliot stared at Ana with wide eyes. His eyes darted to Christian. "Well look at you, Christian! Been letting all of us think you were single this whole time."

"You knew that Christian wasn't gay and didn't say anything Elliot?" Mia shrieked.

Ana darted a look to Christian, wondering if he was annoyed but was watching the whole thing in amusement, winking at Ana when he saw her eyes on him.

"We're not all giant gossips like you, Mia."

"Elliot and Mia can go at it for hours if you let them," Christian whispered in Ana's ear.

"What is happening?" Grace asked upon reentry. She looked around at everyone stances. Elliot and Mia in the middle, the others clearly bystanders.

"Mom! Elliot's known Ana this whole time and didn't say anything to us!"

"You let this carry on," Grace said in exasperation to Carrick, making her way through the people to stand next to Ana, much to her discomfort. "Let's talk calmly like the adults that we all are."

Elliot snorted into his drink, ignoring the glare Grace sent him. She smiled at Ana. "I apologize for my children. I promise I raised them with manners but they have minds of their own."

"Oh, it's no problem. They're certainly entertaining."

Grace laughed, Mia interrupting with a harrumph. "Can we get an explanation now? Like why you thought it was okay to not tell me that Christian had a girlfriend. Even your girlfriend knows her!"

"Kate and I are friends from college," Ana cut in before anything could get more extreme. "We both worked on the newspaper together so we knew each other way before we met Christian or Elliot."

"I met Kate," Elliot said with a reassuring smile to Ana, "when I was with Christian in Portland and we went to a bar where he was apparently meeting Ana. I was a bit distracted by this one though," he tugged Kate close, drawing a giggle from Kate that had Ana smiling. "I apologize for not paying enough attention to fill your gossipy fingers."

"It's not gossip when it's your own brother."

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Ms. Kavanagh." Christian cut in, smoothly ending the beginnings of another argument. "Your article was incredibly well written."

Kate snorted softly and Ana knew she was thinking about all the opportunities that he'd had to meet Kate. Kate would not stop going on about him walking straight by her at graduation with barely a side glance, despite her attempting to catch his attention. "Well, I couldn't have done it without Ana here."

Christian smiled, but didn't disagree making Ana and Kate snicker both.

"What?" Mia asked, looking back and forth between the both of them, a knowing look growing on her face. "Oh, is that where you met, Christian?"

"Yes, Mia." Christian rolled his eyes. Ana pinched his side, seeing him narrow his eyes at her out of the corner of her own but refused to look. He always gave her shit about rolling her eyes so she would do the same. "Anastasia interviewed me for her school paper. Ms. Kavanagh here was supposed to interview me but got sick and sent Ana in her wake giving us the opportunity to meet."

"Aww, that's so sweet!" Mia clapped her hands together.

"You can call her Kate, Christian. Her first name isn't gonna kill you." He smiled, shaking his head. "I see how it is though. I bring a girl home and no one cares at all because you decided to show up with yours. Always upstaging me, Christian."

"It's never very hard to upstage you," Christian replied.

"Alright," Grace said, "now that introductions have been made, let's move this into the dining room. Dinner has been ready for a while and we don't want it to get cold. Ana, dear, I hope you aren't allergic to anything. I made sure to ask Christian, but you never know."

Ana smiled but it was a bit more stilted than she'd intended. "I'm sure everything will be fine. I'm not allergic to anything."

If Ana had been feeling overwhelmed from meeting Christian's mom, the rest of his family was something else entirely. The excitement that danced in their eyes upon meeting her, the relief that stood out most prominently in Grace's eyes. It left Ana feeling uncomfortable and shying further into Christian with each shriek of delight. It was amusing to watch but disconcerting to know it was about her presence this evening.

She pushed further into Christian, grateful when his arm wrapped around her waist. She should have pressed harder on not coming here.

"What's the matter?" Christian whispered in her ear as everyone else moved ahead, Mia throwing knowing looks in their direction and Grace looks of delight.

"I shouldn't have come tonight."

"What are you taking about Ana? They love you."

"I know! That's the problem. What are they going to say when we stop seeing each other, Christian? This is going to break their heart and there wasn't even anything for them to really have in the first place. I'm the first girl you've ever brought home Christian." Ana said, stressing the last sentence. She felt like she was going to hyperventilate. "We should not have done this."

She wasn't anything to the family and she really wasn't anything to Christian. They expected so much of her just because she was the first woman in Christian's life, but really they should be looking at Christian if they truly thought that Christian had brought someone home. It was Christian that had been able to push past his demons to welcome someone else into his life enough to want to introduce to his family. Not Ana. She was just the girl lucky enough to get chosen.

At least in theory. Since none of this was real and all Ana was doing was lying to these fantastic people that only had Christian's heart on their mind and here she was going to be the one to fake break it.

"Hey, hey." Christian pulled her into another room, different than the first but similar design with couches everywhere. "Everything's going to be fine. You don't have to worry about anything. It's my family, not yours. The only heart that's going to get broken is my hypothetical one. I'll talk to them when all is said and done and make sure that they know it's my fault. You're never going to have to see them again. I'm the one that pushed you into doing this. It is no way your fault or responsibility to feel bad about the outcome."

"But I'm the one who went along with this."

"Ana, Ana, breathe." He pulled her into his chest, hands running up and down her back. "Everything's going to be fine."

Ana did just that, leaning her head against Christian's chest and breathing each time he did. His heart was loud underneath her ear and she savored each beat. Looking up Ana gave Christian a weak smile. "I won't ruin this for you but I still think this is an absolutely horrible idea."

"Everything's going to be fine."

Ana didn't reply, but let him lead her back into the dining room where everyone was already seated.

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	13. Chapter 13

**Okay, so I have some bad news... This is going to be the last chapter for a little while, and I really mean a little while! But yeah, I'm working on an original work right now and I need to get it into my beta readers then pre-readers then editor but long story short is that that is my main priority right now. This is the last chapter that I had edited up to, so while the story's still basically done (minus a chapter or two) I just haven't edited it. So there will be a temporary hiatus of 3-4 weeks (maybe 5 at absolute worst!) before I start uploading on a regular schedule again. Again, it will be finished! It's almost all written and I know exactly where I want to take this, but taking a brief break. Don't worry about this going unfinished. And honestly this is a good pausing point because the next few chapters is where the real drama starts and that would be an even worse point to leave you all hanging.**

 **So please read and review, follow me on social media (specifically Facebook) where I'll try to keep you guys up to date on what's happening so you can know when to expect an update.**

 **Also, one reader PM'ed me asking if this story had no cheating and HEA, so I'll answer this here as well if anyone else was worried. Absolutely no cheating! And a guaranteed HEA. I mean, why else would we be here? ;) lol. But of course it will take them a bit to get there.**

 **And thank you to the guest reviewer who left they crazy long review: I appreciate it so much! It was so nice to read and means a lot as a reader how much you weren't just going into the plot, but my choices as an author as well. Thank you lots. Thanks to all my reviews, I read every single one of them and they are food for an authors soul.**

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No one commented on Christian's and Ana's delayed entrance, much to Ana's relief. Both slipped into the two chairs that remained, Ana noting with amusement that Mia was directly across from her.

Once they were all seated the staff began serving the food. Ana frowned slightly, shaking her head at Christian's questioning look. She had gotten used to staff due to Gale's and Taylor's constant presence but she hadn't expected something so formal for a family dinner. Or that they even had stuff, but that was a ridiculous assumption. Based on the size of this house alone, they would need staff to maintain it.

"So, you and Kate met at school, you said?" Grace said as their food was placed around them.

"Yes. We both joined the school newspaper." Kate replied, seated with her back straight, shoulders loose, looking like she belonged.

Ana was reminded that Kate was from an upper class family herself, one of the few that attended WSU. It wasn't Harvard by any means, but they had a few students that were rumored to come from wealth. Ana kept her eyes on Kate, attempting to copy her poise but knowing she was nowhere close to succeeding. Christian rested his hand on her thigh and squeezed, giving her a reassuring smile.

"You two must be good friends then. How nice to be dating brothers. I know that for my girlfriends and I that was always a dream when we were younger. Marrying brothers and becoming families in all but blood."

"Too bad you met me," Carrick replied good naturedly.

"We weren't that close…" Ana trailed off, casting a hesitant look at Kate, relieved when she saw no animosity. "We were your classmate friends, didn't really do much together outside of the paper."

"Oh, my apologies," Grace said looking much more embarrassed than either one of them. "I just assumed since Elliot said you met at a bar together."

"We were out celebrating the success of graduation and the paper." Kate replied, smiling at Christian. "Christian's interview, which no small part was thanks to Ana, helped us enormously. I'm sure you know how private Christian keeps his life, but he opened up in a way that no one else had before and the fact that we were the first. Well, it secured both Ana and I jobs."

"Was that the article that Mia showed me?" Grace said, a look of understanding crossing her face. Mia confirmed. She looked back at Ana then to Christian. "I loved that article. You were so honest; showing the world how generous you are. My son," Grace directed the words to Ana, "always likes to pretend he's the villain. Now that I know who gave the interview I am in no way surprised."

Ana grinned and mumbled a thanks, not really knowing if it was appropriate but not knowing what else to say.

"Beautifully written," Grace said. Ana sighed in relief when Grace's eyes were off her once again, her words meant for Kate. "That was a fantastic piece on my son. You two definitely deserved everything that came from it."

They all dug into their food as soon as the servers had left the room—Ana watching everyone else before she even considered lifting her fork. The conversation flowed smoothly, and much to Ana's relief wasn't all centered around her though there seemed to be a lot more than she would have expected. Kate and Christian both filtered, much to Ana's surprise and relief.

Ana finished dinner quickly, using her full mouth as an excuse not to answer questions. It worked out well at first, until she had finished ahead of everyone else and questions started in her direction once again.

"Would you mind helping me in the kitchen Ana?" Grace asked when everyone was done.

Ana's head snapped to Grace from where she'd been making pleading eyes toward Christian. Her eyes darted to the table then to the door that led to the kitchen where the staff had been working. A part of her wanted to refuse on the sake of feminism and that just because she was a woman didn't mean that was her job. The other part noted that it was only she that Grace had asked and rebelled even louder because it meant she wanted a heart to heart. Ana swallowed and nodded, following Grace into the kitchen with everyone else's plate.

"I hope none of us made you too uncomfortable." Grace patted Ana's shoulder as she put the plates onto the counter not moving to do anything else and Ana knew her assumption was correct. She should have forced Christian to help out too.

"No, everyone has been wonderful," Ana said like she was supposed to.

Grace pulled them to the kitchen island and onto the two bar stools that were there. Ana could picture a little Christian and his brother sitting at these very same bar stools waiting for their mom to finish cooking.

"Ana," Grace started, "I just wanted to say thank you, for what you've done for Christian."

Ana had to physically stop herself from flinching, mind going a thousand different directions in an attempt to derail this conversation and coming up with nothing. "I haven't done anything for Christian besides date him. I think you're giving me way too much benefit of the doubt here." Her smile was stiff. "All of it was on Christian deciding he was ready to date."

Grace's returning smile was small but full of meaning. "That is exactly why I want to thank you. Christian couldn't have chosen better."

Ana shifted, discomfort growing in spades. Christian needed to barge in here and demand Ana's attention. Or just have insisted on coming with her in the first place to help. Kate didn't get any speech from the mother, she should be here too. Of course, no one came in.

"I see the way he looks at you. You have nothing to worry about. I look forward to the day when I can welcome you into the family."

"I—I'm flattered, Mrs. Grey—"

"Grace, please."

"I'm really flattered," Ana continued. The last name had slipped out but it also served its point perfectly. Ana had never addressed people by their last name until she met Christian. Now she saw how it gave a certain level of control to the speaker that Ana had never been able to claim with just first names alone. "But I just—Christian and I just met and—"

"Oh my," Grace slapped a hand over her mouth. "I am so sorry!" She actually blushed. If Ana wasn't there to see it herself she never would have expected such a human response from the refined woman in front of her. "I didn't mean to overwhelm you like this. This must be horrible for you."

Ana lifted her shoulder and hummed a non-reply that was reply enough.

"You have to forgive us. All of us, but myself especially. We're just so excited to see Christian with someone. He's always been incredibly private and we were worried that he was going to spend the rest of his life alone. Or that he was gay and hiding it from us."

Ana snorted at that last bit. "You and the rest of the world." She cleared her throat. "Look, I'm really glad that you think so highly of me, but I am his first girlfriend—" The inside of Ana's head was screaming at her for the lies she spewed but needed to. "—and he's my first boyfriend. I'm really glad you have such faith in us but… it's daunting. I just—it's our first relationship."

Grace sighed happily and squeezed Ana's forearm. "You have absolutely nothing to worry about. I wish that my first boyfriend looked at me the way that he looks at you."

Ana pressed her lips together in a mockery of a smile. Grace was not getting her point and she didn't know how much more to force it. If she spoke more about not expecting anything from them she felt like their lie would get exposed—whether for the actual truth or something even worse, Ana did not know. The whole thing was messed up—even if she had actually been dating Christian. It was Christian's family that was in the honeymoon stage and were going to have a harsh dose of reality when it came swinging.

She was grateful that they weren't actually dating because it would only be a massive blow to her ego when she and did Christian broke up. It was always nice to hear that the family loved the match, but Ana knew she never actually stood a chance to be the one that Christian married. Ana moved to the edge of her chair. "Should we get started on the dishes?"

"Oh, we don't need to worry about that. The staff will take care of it." She still stood, much to Ana's relief. "Let's head back on out before Christian comes looking for us. I saw the way he was looking at you. Hardly wants to let you out of his sight."

Ana laughed obligingly and followed Grace out of the kitchen, making a beeline for Christian as soon as she saw him.

He wrapped his arm around her and moved her out of everyone's eye line to whisper in her ear. "Everything okay?"

"Yep. No suspicions."

He stilled a moment longer, eyes unreadable before nodding and turning them back to the conversation.

"Christian has a boat but he never uses it." Ana caught the tail end of Elliot's conversation that he was having with Kate when they moved closer to them. Ana because of Kate and Christian knowing that Elliot will be the calmest to speak to. There had been a rebuff or two too many at the dinner table when it came to Mia asking questions of the personal variety, not shy at broaching any subject.

"We used it last week," Ana said. Silence filled the room. Ana and Kate exchanged a confused glance. "Uhh… should I not have said that?"

Christian never got the chance to respond as Grace raised her glass of wine, Carrick handing Ana another full one. "I would like to propose a toast. To Ana."

All the eyes moved to her once again. Ana breathed out. Christian pulled her further into his chest.

"To Ana." Everyone echoed.

Ana swallowed and smiled. It felt stiff to her but everyone else seemed to believe it, except for Kate who stood there wincing apologetically.

"I'm going to give Ana a tour," Christian said once everyone was finished. He sent a pointed look at Grace and steered Ana out the door. Ana gave her own reassuring smile as she moved by, attempting to make sure that it didn't seem like she was fleeing. She doubted she succeeded.

Ana didn't breathe until they were safely out of everyone's line of sight and moving down the hallway. Ana noted a few other beautifully decorated rooms and family portraits that they passed by but neither stopped until they were outside staring at the backyard.

"That was so awkward." It felt like a scene straight out of a movie, but not even realistic. It almost felt like a comedy. She'd have believed they were all mocking her if she didn't know Christian so well and know where their excitement was coming from. It didn't change that it made her feel incredibly uncomfortable when they looked at her as if she was Christian's savior. "It's almost insulting."

Christian chuckled, "You don't need to be so dramatic."

Ana looked at him in the eye, shaking her own head. "What was with that?"

"I told you that you're the first woman I've taken on a boat other than my family. They know that and they see it as another way that I have let you into my life. They think it means that you're here to stay."

Ana scoffed. "You should have heard the conversation I had with your mother. She was practically shoving me down the aisle. I wouldn't be surprised if she's already picked out the wedding date and dress."

"Her and my sister both. While my mother was talking to you, Mia cornered me and grilled me on you."

Ana was comforted that she had not been the only one in a position of discomfort. "What'd you tell her?"

"That it was none of her business."

Ana giggled. "Wish I could have done that to your mother."

"You should have."

"No I couldn't have."

"Why not? It's not that you need to worry about your reputation with regards to her."

"It's not that I'm worried about my reputation but I don't need to go around making a bad one! Geez. I don't want the woman to hate me." Ana pursed her lips in consideration. "Though I guess it wouldn't be a bad thing either."

Christian chuckled and pulled her into him, tucking his head over her shoulder as both breathed in the chilled air.

"Is there an indoor pool?" Ana asked.

"Why?" Christian turned his head down to look at Ana, brow tilted in amused curiosity.

"I didn't see a pool in your backyard and I always assumed rich people had a pool. So please fit into my rich people stereotype and say you have a pool. Even an indoor one. I will truly be fulfilled if you don't just have an indoor pool but an outdoor one as well in true rich people style."

Christian let out a loud laugh. "There is an indoor pool but alas we do not have an outdoor one. There is a boathouse. I can show you that if you'd like. Give you a bit of the tour that I claimed to have taken you on."

Ana giggled and followed Christian out into the garden.

* * *

"Wait, Ana." Kate's voice stopped Ana right before she could get into Christian's car. Both she and Christian looked over at Kate who was rushing down the stairs despite both of them having already said goodbye. "We should hang out sometime." Kate continued, reaching them. "We're both in the city after all and I know how nice it is to have a few familiar faces."

"I would really like that," Ana said, a pleased smile crossing her face. She had planned on texting Kate the following day but this was just as good.

She and Kate had always gotten along and seeing her again had reminded Ana of that. It was disappointed that they'd never made a point to really get to know each other outside of the newspaper. It had always been easy to know that they'd see each other in the office and not worry about it outside since they both led incredibly busy lives. They should have made more of an effort to continue the friendship, especially with the both of them moving to the city. She was more than delighted to know that Kate felt the same way.

"Okay, glad we're on the same boat. I'll text you."

"Perfect."

With a final hug, Kate made her way over to Elliot who had also exited during this time, Kate's coat held over one arm.

"You do realize," Christian said once the both of them were in his car, "that once our arrangement is done you cannot have any more contact with my family."

"Yeah…"

"Even if you get invited to an event that they'll be at," Christian said slowly.

"I don't plan on hanging out with your sister if that's what you mean. I wouldn't hang out with her even now. Not that I think she's a bad person—just you know, what's the point?" Ana lifted a shoulder and slid into the car. She looked up at Christian. "I don't think you'll have anything to worry about in regards to me seeing her afterwards."

"That includes my brother. He might not be serious about Kate but I know that they'll last a while longer."

She wished she hadn't gotten in the car so she could be standing face to face to him. "I don't know if I should be more offended for myself or Kate. Neither one of us are idiots Christian. Once we're done with this she's not gonna invite me to something that you're going to and if she did I wouldn't accept."

"That means my family too."

"Yeah, I got that. I'll say no if Kate invites me to do something with her and Elliot even now. I don't really want to be spending time with your family either way but there's no way I'm not going to talk to Kate. We were friends long before I met you and we'll be friends long after you're gone. I'm sorry with this little inconvenience but it's not like it was even my fault. You're the one that introduced the two."

Christian opened his mouth then closed it. Huffing he started the car. "I need to keep my family separate from my private life."

Ana resisted to point out that normally those two were the same things. "I get it Christian but you're the one that introduced all of us. You made your bed, now lie in it. We'll cross that bridge once we get there. You don't have to worry about me purposefully making it harder for you."

Christian is silent, staring at Ana in consideration. Finally, he turned on the car and pulled out of the driveway. "I'm taking you home."

Ana rolled her eyes at the window but didn't say anything else, knowing that Christian meant his words as a punishment. It meant that they would not be spending the night together, but it was always Christian that seemed much more anxious to get into her pants. It would be his own punishment for being as petulant as he was right now and Ana would make sure he faced it.

* * *

"I think we need to break up." Ana said when they pulled up in front of her apartment building. It stood in the dark, all of her neighbors already asleep. It was a largely family complex which meant Ana didn't need to worry about any late night parties. However, she'd occasionally get woken up by children running around early in the morning who still thought wake up time was when the sun came up.

"What?" Christian spun on her, eyes wild.

"We need to break up." She had been thinking about it the entire car ride, Christian's words going through her head at a thousand miles an hour. There was nothing she could do with the Kate-Elliot situation. Nothing that she would be willing to do, but that didn't mean that it could be handled better.

"I don't see any reason why we need to. Everything has been going perfectly fine, and I apologize for my family getting involved but that doesn't mean that we need to end this agreement. Everything has been working fine." He ran his hands through his hair with agitation.

"Christian," Ana soothed, "I just mean that we need your family to no longer think we are together. So… break up."

Christian stared at her, dawning comprehension coming across his face. "You don't actually want to end our agreement."

"No." Ana resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Now was not the time. "I want to fake break up. Or more accurately you go tell your parents sometime this week that we broke up and you're sorry you got their hopes up. You can say that I was feeling overwhelmed and we were moving too fast so we decided to end it." It wouldn't have be too far off from the truth.

Christian considered Ana. "That could work."

"Of course it could work. People break up all the time."

Christian crossed his arms over his chest. "I'll do it as long as you agree to do one thing for me."

Ana huffed in amazement. This was becoming a negotiation for something that they both wanted. "What Christian?"

"My family hosts a gala for a charity that my mother runs. This year I would like you to attend it with me. Then I'll tell my parents after that it wasn't working out between us. And all the other stuff."

"Christian, we need to just end this now. I don't want to lie to your family. They're such good people."

Christian took her hand. "By going to the gala it will help cement that. It will show that we've attempted our relationship and just found that it wasn't working for us."

"Is this another one of those you've never taken a woman to these events before?"

"I've taken my CFO."

"Is she female?" Ana asked dryly.

Christian nodded.

"Is she married?"

"Happily married for the last five years."

"You're really digging this hole for yourself there."

"Ana, please," Christian tugged her closer. "Would you do me the honor of attending the gala with me? I find them incredibly boring and you have a way of making anything entertaining."

"Now I just want to say no because that's a lot of pressure. What if I sleep at the table? I doubt that'll keep you very entertained."

Christian chucked. "At least I'll be able to look at you."

"Okay, now you're just bordering on pervy territory. I'll go to the gala with you but we have to break up afterwards okay. I can't even see them again." A thought occurred to her. "When is it?"

"In two weeks."

"Okay, we can do that." Ana nodded to herself. That wasn't as long as she had expected and Christian had a point. By being together longer it gave them more ground to stand on for a break up—at least in the eyes of onlookers. Would make it look like they had given it a shot and that Ana hadn't given up after meeting his family one time. She looked up at Christian. "Let's do it."

* * *

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	14. Chapter 14

**Surprise! This is a bit mean 'cause I'm still not exactly back but I had some time today and was like what the heck I'm gonna do it. I'm still working on my original work and it should be in to my beta readers real soon, I just unfortunately have been a lot more of a procrastinator than I expect. Ugh. But getting better each day. This update is kind of proof of that. I'm pretty sure I'm late anyways, a bit unsure of when I posted last in regards to my promise of 4-5 weeks. But like I said I have not forgotten about you! You have all left the nicest comments and they are just amazing.**

 **So here is my next chapter. I might be back on my update schedule or it might be next Sunday. This week will be telling. I'm hitting the end where I really got to up my game or I am screwed. Anyways, I really hope you enjoy it. I'll be honest. When I first wrote this chapter I wasn't really pleased with it but after taking some time away from it then going back I was like huh, that was a lot better than I remembered. I'm glad I included that.**

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 **Now I'm going to sleep.**

* * *

Chapter 14

"What should I wear to the gala?" Ana asked Christian.

He was seated in his home office finishing up paperwork when he'd called Ana over earlier than she'd planned on heading over herself. He still wasn't done by the time she arrived leaving her to wander around the apartment, ending up in his office, poking around at things he had laying around. It wasn't very much, besides some art and knick-knacks. She couldn't even find a single photo.

"I'll show you," Christian said. He finished typing something on his laptop and stood, looking at Ana for the first time since she had entered, beyond a simple once over.

Ana gave him a kiss, smug at the way that he pulled her in and made it longer than a simple peck. She loved all kisses with Christian, but the greetings one were always her favorite. Christian kissed like a drowning man who finally got his first breath of air.

"I had the pleasure of ordering this for you last week." Christian said, leading her in to his room where a large box laid on his bed. "I was planning on having you pick it out but you were busy last week and I needed to get it in or else I wouldn't have had been done in time."

"Been done?" Ana asked with wide eyes, making her way to the large box. She fingered it with apprehension, not opening it until Christian huffed and did it for her. Slowly, slowly, the most beautiful dress Ana had ever seen was revealed laid out on the bed in front of her. "I was planning on using one of the dresses that you had already bought me."

It was a silvery gray color with a loose front that she knew would hang around her frame just right as every single other piece of clothing Christian had ever bought for her had. She fingered the material lightly, feeling the buttery softness of the fabric. She didn't know what it was made out of but knew it was expensive.

"No girlfriend of mine would go to a gala in an off the line dress," Christian said.

Ana couldn't decide which part of what he had said was more ridiculous. "You're taking the boyfriend label very serious." She touched the fabric again. "I can't believe you did this. How much did this cost?"

"You don't want the answer to that question."

Ana side eyed him but relented knowing he was more than right. She already knew she was going to accept it and knowing the man it would be just as extravagant as every other item he tried or did procure for her. The man didn't know the meaning of simple.

He certainly taught her a new definition of wealthy.

"Can I try it on?" she asked breathlessly.

"Of course, it's yours." Christian replied with a pleased smirk.

Ana didn't waste any time, stripping to her bra and underwear and slipping the dress over her head. "Can you zip me up?" she turned to Christian. The zipper was on the side for this very purpose but she found herself wanting Christian to do the honors.

He stepped forward, fingers sliding slowly around her waist so that she was forced to move closer into him as his right arm went around instead of simply moving to her left side. His eyes didn't leave hers, Ana breathless by the time he finished. She more than willingly let Christian tilt her head back and pull her in for a kiss. "You look beautiful."

"Thank you," Ana smiled, making her way over to the full length mirror that Christian had in his closet.

She gasped upon seeing herself. She never would have chosen gray for herself, but Christian knew a lot more about fashion than he let on, the color matching her skin tone perfectly. It started with a slightly ruffled front, flowing down and hugging her waist before rippling down at her feet. She looked like Christian Grey's girlfriend standing in this dress.

Ana's eyes widened. "I already want to take it off."

Christian chuckled. "Relax Ana. We've talked about it many times but the money means nothing to me. Beautiful women deserve beautiful things and I want to spend it on you. I make more money every second than most people will in a year. This dress was nothing."

"Did this dress cost you a second of your salary?"

Chuckling again Christian pulled her into him. "I have a tailor who will come over to make any needed alterations that will be done by the time the hair and make-up specialist are finished."

"Hair and make-up specialist?"

"Don't look so panicked Ana." Christian clucked her under the cheek and moved away, Ana following him out into his bedroom.

"Is this why you had me come over so early?"

"Of course."

"You could have told me." She thought about her makeup kit that she had brought with her, along with any hair accessories that she thought she would need. She'd planned on doing her own hair and makeup at her apartment before heading over but Christian apparently had different plans.

Neither one of them had discussed the gala over the past few weeks, both avoiding what would be coming afterwards. Ana knew her own reason, the fear of disappointing his family even when she had no reason to. She didn't know Christian's.

"Then you wouldn't have come."

And glowered but didn't refute, knowing he was correct. "What time do they get here?"

"The tailor will be here in about an hour and the rest an hour after him."

"Isn't that still a bit early?" It was only a little after one and the gala wasn't until eight this evening and Christian had reassured her that he always arrived late.

"I was advised to give this much time," Christian said. "Now come on. I had Gail prepare us a late lunch. We'll be eating dinner at the gala, so she'll make sure to provide us something light to eat before we head out."

"How long are we going to be there?" Ana asked, stepping out of the dress and laying it back on the bed. She slipped back into her jeans and green top, moving towards the door that Christian where standing.

He stopped her before she could go through with a hand on her waist. She looked up at him questioningly. He placed a soft kiss on her lips. "You are incredibly beautiful; you know that?"

Ana quirked her lips up in amusement. "You saying that 'cause I just got undressed in front of you? Or the million-dollar dress that I just put on."

"You look beautiful in everything you wear. But I like you best like this. Comfortable with where you are and who you are."

"I'm glad." Ana squeezed his hand, her heart squeezing in her chest. She loved and hated when Christian said things like this. Of course they made her feel good but she knew that he felt that way about anyone he was in this type of relationship with. She wasn't special. "Now let's go eat."

Christian didn't stop her as she moved by, following her down the steps and into the living room.

"When are you going to get dressed?" Ana asked once they had their plates in front of them. It was a salmon dish Gail had made one of the first times she cooked for Ana who had absolutely raved about it.

"I'll get dressed right before we leave."

Ana scoffed. "The life of being a man. Will you be working while I make sure I am beautiful enough for the high society of Seattle?"

"I have a few reports that I need to go over," Christian replied.

"Always working." Ana shook her head fondly, her tone light. Christian was a lot better at delegating than she would have guessed for a man in his position.

Every time she was over, their time was specifically for them unless an emergency arose or Ana stayed longer than they had originally intended. Something that had been occurring with more and more frequency which often left Ana in the library doing some reading while Christian worked in his office. Sometimes he would come in and join her when he knew he wouldn't be making any calls.

"Is there anything specific that I should know about tonight? Who's on the guest list?"

"You might recognize a few people though not many."

Ana nodded. "My stalking did mainly center around you."

Christian snorted. Ana's stalking had come up a time or two when Ana would confirm already knowing something because of how intensely she'd researched him. She had successfully kept her crush a secret, at least as far as she knew. The amount of dedication she had in her searches were telling enough and she wouldn't be surprised if he already knew or suspected.

* * *

The rest of the evening passed quickly. Ana feeling like a true princess as her hair and makeup were done to utter perfection. Her hair was pulled into a French twist with her bangs hanging down and brushed slightly to the side. She had never seen her hair look so full and healthy. Whenever she attempted a French twist it would turn out flat and never stay in.

Her makeup was lighter than she would have expected but like her hair, utterly flawless. A light smokey eye surrounded her blue iris's making the color stand out even more. The makeup artist had completely gushed over Ana's skin and its translucent like quality, insisting on keeping her foundation as light as possible to keep her natural skin shining through.

"I love it," Ana gaped at the mirror. "Now all I'm going to have to do for the rest of the night is not touch it at all. No big deal."

Laura laughed, pleased smile on both of their faces.

"Here," Laura said, handing Ana the tube of lipstick she had used. "You'll need to reapply this after dinner but besides that you should be fine. I have perfected my lipstick method but even Aphrodite would have problems keeping it on after eating if she doesn't have skills."

"Are you calling me a rookie?"

"No," Laura replied quickly. "I only know that you don't wear makeup often and haven't mastered the skill to make sure that you don't smear it through the night no matter how unintentionally. You should see celebrities on the red carpet. The only reason that their makeup always looks so picture perfect is because they get touch ups done every half hour."

A chuckle was heard from behind them, drawing their attention to Christian who appeared in the doorway. He smiled at Laura, the woman appearing to be dazed. Ana knew the feeling and smiled sympathetically.

"Don't mind Ana, she's just giving you a hard time," Christian said having apparently been eaves dropping for longer than she had thought.

Ana mocked gasp. "I would never do that."

Christian smiled stepping closer to Ana, seeming to have already forgotten about Laura. "You look beautiful."

"Thank you." Ana vaguely heard the other woman packing up their stuff and saying goodbye. "Bye!" Ana called as she left, her hair stylist having finished earlier than Laura and already departed.

Christian assured Laura that Taylor would lead them out.

"She was sweet. How did you find them?"

"Ros recommended them to me actually. Told me that they're starting up right now but are have an excellent reputation."

"Well having Christian Grey as a client will certainly help them now. That was nice of you." She had expected to hear that they were from a salon, not two new entrepreneurs. For a man who was already at the top, he always made sure to help the people still rising, aware that he wouldn't be where he was without other people's help.

"I have something for you," Christian broke Ana out of her thoughts.

"Hmm?" Ana's eyes dropped to Christian's hand. She hadn't noticed until that moment that one of them had been behind his back the entire time. "What's that?" She eyed the black velvet case in his hand. It was too small to be a necklace but too big to be a bracelet.

"Open it." Christian held the black case in the palm of his hands.

Ana's fingered drew along the side before lifting the case. She'd never received jewelry as a present. Her jaw dropped when she saw what was inside. "Oh my god, Christian. It's _gorgeous_." Laying on the black fabric was a diamond studded hair clip with branches twining all around the side. "This is amazing."

"May I?" Christian asked, one hand hovering over the clip.

Ana gulped and nodded, turning so she could see Christian in the bathroom mirror. She watched as he lifted the clip from its case and moved towards her hair. "I was given strict instructions on how to put this in your hair to make sure that it wouldn't fall out and was in the right place but this is my first time. Forgive me for any errors."

Ana giggled, the sound much more high pitched than she'd intended. She watched in amazement as Christian slid the beautiful jewel into her hair and finally held up a hand mirror behind her so she could see it. Ana gaped at the accessory, nestled perfectly in her dark brown lockes, making the hairdo look even more incredible than it was five seconds ago.

Ana turned and pulled Christian in to a hug. "I love it."

* * *

Ana exhaled slowly when they pulled up in front of Christian's parents' house. Taylor was driving this time, allowing both Ana and Christian to sit in the back of the black Audi SUV. The house had been completely transformed since Ana had been there last. While the house was still beautiful and no one could deny it, the main attraction was now to the side where large tents were set up. If it wasn't for all the people and cars surrounding it that just dripped money, Ana would have assumed she was at the circus. A very high class, exclusive, circus.

"I don't know if this is a good idea." Ana turned to Christian, grabbing his hand to stop him from getting out of the car, nerves attacking Ana's stomach.

"What, how come?" Christian waved Taylor away who had opened Ana's door. The door closed softly and they could see Taylor lean against the car nonchalantly.

"I am so out of my depth here. It's one thing to meet your parents at their home, but a whole other thing when I'm meeting all of their friends. This was a bad idea. Tell them that I broke up with you in the car."

"Ana," Christian leaned in, hand going to the back of her neck and rubbing the skin he found there. "You know we can't do that. I've already promised my parents we'll be here. We had a plan, remember?"

"And I want to change the plan."

Christian tightened his grip ever so slightly, but no anger reached his voice, only a hint of frustration. "What's the problem all of a sudden?"

Ana hesitated and then decided to go for broke. She'd never lied to Christian before and she wasn't about to start now. "I feel intimidated. All these people are used to money and here I am in a dress that costs more than I have made since I started working in the professional world and that doesn't even touch the subject of your family. I am going to be so out of place in there."

"You're making something out of nothing Ana. No one here cares about any of that stuff."

Ana gave him a look.

Christian back peddled with a heavy sigh. "People care, but it doesn't matter," he said instead. "You're going to be on my arm and that's all anyone is going to be talking about."

"So they're going to be wondering who I am. That really reassures me Christian." A thought dawned on her. Something she should have been thinking about from the very moment that Christian invited her to the gala. "This is another boat trip."

Christian frowned. "I'm not following."

Ana smacked Christian's leg. Christian grabbed the hand but didn't react in any other way. "This is another boat trip. You have never been seen with another woman and I'm going to be the very first one ever! Christian, forget your parents, now we're going to have to deal with the rest of the world. This was a really bad idea. We should have broken up last week." Ana nibbled at her lip as all the consequences flashed through her mind.

"Ana, there won't be any photographers at this event. There are only ones allowed outside as people enter, but none are allowed inside besides the ones that we have vetted for the event specifically. There will be no paparazzi and I will make sure that none of the photos of us are published as soon as the night is over. You and I can go through the house here and enter in the back. No one is going to know." Christian moved closer to her. "I wouldn't do that to you."

Ana blinked. "That might actually work." She nodded to herself a smile forming on her face, relief coursing through her body. "You sure that we can sneak in the back?"

"I grew up here. Of course I can sneak us in the back. I could get us through the entire house without anyone noticing."

Ana laughed. It came out a bit louder than normal due to her relief, but was still authentic. "Did little Christian like to sneak out of the house at night?"

"Little Christian liked to pretend he was a secret agent," Christian replied, chagrined.

Ana almost died at the cuteness of that image.

"Will it make you feel better if Kate was here?"

"Kate's here?" Ana frowned. They'd talked about the gala just a couple of days ago when they had gone out for dinner after they both got off of work.

It was the first time they'd been able to meet since the dinner. The both of them had lamented about how awkward it had been with both the Grey women practically worshipping at Ana's feet. Ana had sheepishly apologized for it, since it was also Kate's first time meeting the family but she had brushed it off with a laugh. Kate knew Elliot Grey had more than a small reputation when it came to the women of Seattle and was not naïve about it. She told Ana how she wasn't the first women he brought home, and wouldn't be the last. But she would enjoy the time while she had it.

"Elliot invited her."

"Is it getting pretty serious?"

Christian shrugged. "He's brought women to dinner before and to the gala, but never the same one. If I remember correctly, Kate is the longest woman he's ever dated. They're coming on what, three months now? Four?"

"I think so." Ana bit her lip and stared out the window.

Christian caught her chin, and tugged her lip out from her teeth. "You know what that does to me. We'll never get inside if you keep it up."

Ana's lips twisted into a naughty smirk. "Maybe that's what I want."

Christian laughed, Ana relishing the sound. He'd become much more open about his expressions the longer that they knew each other but Ana knew to never take them for granted and loved every time she got a genuine reaction out of him. "You're going to be fine tonight, Ana. My family loves you, you'll have Kate there and even my brother. He won't let Mia cart you off and if she tries I'll make sure to keep her in check."

"You won't leave my side all night?" She knew it was a bit unfair to ask of him, he most likely did a lot of networking at these type of events but she figured it wasn't too much to ask since he said they wouldn't be staying long anyways.

"I won't leave your side all night," Christian promised.

Ana breathed deeply and pushed away all the butterflies. More like ignored because she knew that she was going to have them all night long and there was nothing she could do about it. She didn't care about the people inside, she only worried they were the jealous and vindictive type because of movies that she saw. Mean Girls told her that high school was going to be full of cliques and that there would be one popular girl who was the bitch of the school. Ana's high school had been nothing like that. Hopefully, this would be the same.

"Let's do it," Ana said.

Christian knocked at the door, letting Taylor know that they were ready and slid out of his side as Taylor opened Ana's. She used a small compact mirror she'd been instructed to carry around to fix her lipstick. Taking a deep breath, she stepped out of the car and took Christian's hand.

"Ready?" He squeezed her hand and tilted her face up to his, gray eyes searching blue.

Ana nodded. "Ready."

* * *

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	15. Chapter 15

**Here's an update for you all :) And now I'm off to see The Crimes of Grindelwald**

* * *

Chapter 15

"I'll give you a call when we're ready to leave Taylor," Christian said once he had rounded the car, slipping his arm around Ana's waist. "Should be shortly after dinner. We're going in the front door so we'll meet you inside."

"I'll see you then, sir." Taylor responded, in his usual cool tone. With a nod to Ana and Christian he disappeared, heading towards the crowds of people.

"Where is he going?"

"He'll be inside with us, but keeping his distance. This is an incredibly public event so we both need the security, with most of the guests here tonight having security of some sort. My mother makes sure they're all suitably welcomed, along with hiring extra security to make sure the grounds stay secure."

"And to think that the most I ever had to worry about when I throw a party is making sure that there will be enough food," Ana responded in muted amazement. It was incredible to think of how different their lives were sometimes. Yes, there were a lot of benefits, but there were also a lot of inconveniences.

"Trust me. My mother worries about that as well."

They started up the steps that led to the front doors, Christian pulling out a key that Ana had never seen before.

"I didn't realize you even knew what a key was."

"Do you also think that I've never been in a grocery store?"

"…Have you?"

Christian laughed, shaking his head. "Yes, Ana. I have."

"I just wanted to make sure," Ana said, raising her hands in the air in mock surrender.

Entering the house, they made their way through, Christian walking around on his tip toes and ducking behind every corner until Ana was in tears of laughter in the middle of the hallway, unable to make it further, she was laughing so hard. "Christian, Christian, stop," she begged.

"We have to make it through, top secret, Ana. No one can know we're here." He tugged her behind a corner and placed his hand over her mouth as two women carrying trays walked by.

Ana continued to laugh into Christian's hand. "Christian, stop." She tugged his sleeve, leaning over his arm and gasping for breath between her fits of giggles. "You're going to ruin my makeup."

"I'm only—"

"Christian?" a familiar voice cut into the conversation.

Christian's smile dropped as they both turned to see Elena standing in the doorway of the room they'd just ducked into, given them an unimpressed look.

Ana scowled. She'd thought of Elena many times since their encounter, especially the first few days, and any time the lunch hour drew near when she was at work and her thoughts darted to whether she'd get another unexpected visitor. But Christian had held true to his word and Ana hadn't another mention from Elena and slowly Ana had stopped thinking of her. It hadn't crossed her mind to expect to see her tonight.

"Elena," Christian cleared his throat and fidgeted with his bowtie. Something that Ana had been delighted to see Christian wearing when he came out fully dressed. Now he looked like he was ready to rip it off. "I didn't realize you were here tonight."

"I come every year. I am invited." Elena looked over Ana who just scowled further and wrapped her hand around Christian's.

She didn't want to talk to this woman and never would. She didn't understand what her problem was but what Ana did know, was that she had way too much control over Christian for someone that wasn't related to him. Christian's own mother didn't look at him with such possessiveness.

"We have to get going," Christian said, "we need to find my mother. She didn't see us when we came in."

"That's surprising," Elena replied knowingly, "she's at the main entrance greeting everyone. Unless you snuck in the backdoor. That's unlike you Christian. Don't tell me you're trying to hide your little girlfriend from the press? Don't think she can handle it?"

Ana rolled her eyes, smug when she saw fury spark in Elena's. "Come on Christian, let's get going." She wasn't going to pretend she wanted to speak with the woman that had tried to warn her away from Christian.

"We'll talk later," Christian said, leading Ana out the door.

"I didn't realize you were the one taking orders Christian," Elena called to their retreating figures.

Ana felt Christian stiffen, but she didn't let either of them stop until they were out of the room and down a hallway. Christian seemed to catch up to himself and instead of leading her towards the backyard like she'd expected, led her up the stairs and into a room that she hadn't been in before.

"I can't stand that woman," Ana said once the door was closed and she was facing Christian. "She was trying to make me jealous. Who does she think she is? She needs to learn to leave you alone."

"She's not that bad."

Ana's eyes snapped to Christian's. "I can tell you she's that bad and I barely know her. How is she friends with your mother? More importantly, how is she friends with you?" For a man who claimed to have no friends, having one like Elena was extremely odd. The woman screamed gold digger and if she was younger, Ana wouldn't be surprised to see her chasing Christian's skirt.

"They went to the same university. My mother and her were friends and when Grace started dating Carrick, she introduced Elena to Abe Lincoln, her first husband and the rest went down in history. My mother and sister are eager clients at Esclava, Elena's salon."

"She runs a salon?" Ana was not surprised.

As much as she disliked the woman she certainly knew how to dress, her blonde hair always looked beautiful and expertly styled. If Elena hadn't approached Ana in such a stand offish manner, Ana would've been delighted to go to a salon owned by someone that looks like Elena.

Christian hummed his confirmation.

"I still don't like her. Is she going to be bothering me again tonight? Do I need to watch out for another tell off from her? I kind of don't want to break up anymore. It'll make her think she was right when she couldn't be further from the truth." The thought of proving that woman correct drove Ana crazy.

"Let's go greet my mother," Christian said instead of answering.

Ana let him lead her out of the room, knowing that they wouldn't be coming to a consensus regarding that woman anytime soon, if ever.

"Was that your room?" Ana sked as they made their way down the staircase. Christian had led them to a different one than what they had come up on. Ana could hear the music from the party now, and was grateful they wouldn't be running into Elena downstairs.

"Yes."

Ana wished she'd said something more when they were in there, or gotten a closer look around. The thought hadn't crossed her mind until they were already out, that the room looked like it belonged to a teenager, and who that teenager could possibly be. Or had been. She smiled at the thought, her expression morphing to jaw dropping awe as they entered the tent.

She'd already been impressed by the outside and was grateful she'd seen the Grey's house before it was transformed so she could get the full effect of all the work they had done for tonight. The garden was lit up, and looked like it belonged in a fairy court. The mystical theme continued inside the tent, lights everywhere, dancing off glass that made it look even more magical. "This is amazing."

Christian smiled, clearly pleased. Placing a hand on her lower back he led her through the room. "Let's go find our seat."

"I thought we had to meet your mother."

"She shouldn't be greeting people any longer. She only does that for the first half hour and the dinner is about to start. We'll meet her there, along with everyone else. They don't expect me until now, or even after dinner, sometimes."

"Are you normally late?" Ana asked as they maneuvered their way through the throngs of people, Christian deftly avoiding having to interact with anyone.

"To public events that are only put on to show off wealth? Always. A business meeting? Never."

"So you think that your mother is only doing this to show off her wealth."

"Oh, she is. Everyone here is. The difference with my mother—and of course, she's not the only one, just not as many as I would like—who puts this on for the money _and_ is serious about her charity. Many just write the check and never see where the money goes afterwards because it's off their conscience and they feel they've done their good deed.

"For events like these, it's all about wealthy people coming and rubbing shoulders with each other, and we're able to raise more money than was used to put this event together, which is the goal. The type of people we want here wouldn't be happy at all if we saved the money being used for the event to donate immediately and then kept this event simple. If we did that, no one would show up. And as much as I love my mother," Christian added ruefully, "she is a product of old money and does enjoy a tasteful flaunt now and then."

"Like mother like son," Ana replied cheekily right as they reached their table where everyone besides Christian's parents were seated.

"Ana!" Mia chirped, rising and pulling Ana into a hug.

"It's good to see you too, Mia," Christian replied dryly. "I haven't seen you in such a long time and have missed you so much."

"Oh, hush, Christian," Mia replied, pulling Christian into a hug. A full body hug that Ana hadn't seen anyone else give Christian and one she wasn't allowed to do unless her arms were around his neck. "I see you all the time, but Ana here is still new and shiny."

"Leave the poor girl alone," Elliot said, standing and giving Ana her own hug. "It's good to see you Ana."

"It's good to see you too, Elliot." Ana ducked next to him and pulled Kate into a hug, sighing in her ear. "Thank god you were able to make it."

Kate laughed. "That was all Christian, I heard he was incredibly insistent on making sure that Elliot brought me." She directed the last words to the two men that were greeting each other.

"You should have heard him," Elliot replied with a smug grin. He smacked Christian on the arm. "Telling me about how he didn't want you to feel out of place and how much more comfortable you'd be with a familiar face around."

"Awww," Mia cooed, eyes going back and forth between the two of them.

"Alright, that's enough," Christian rolled his eyes. He motioned for Ana, pulling out her chair and tucking it under as she sat. "I apologize for leaving you sitting next to Mia, but she's in charge of the seating arrangements and I wasn't able to get to them in time."

"Please," Mia replied, sitting haughtily in her own chair as Christian helped her, before taking his place on Ana's other side. "Mom wouldn't have let you change the seats even if you donated a million dollars."

"It crossed my mind," Christian muttered quiet enough only for Ana to hear.

"Christian always tries to get out of these things by just donating and Mom has to tell him each year that she'll take his donation but he still needs to show up. You think he'd learn by now."

"Some people are always slow learners," Elliot said.

The table crowed and continued going with the gentle ribbing, Christian leaning on the table, eyes wide and clear as he laughed with all of them. Ana gave as good as she got, but was happy for the most part to simply watch as Christian and his siblings interacted. She'd seen a bit of it when they first met them all, but Ana, as the new factor, changed their interactions, she could now see. It was good to see Christian goofing around and not acting like a perpetual CEO who only knew how to run a company.

Grace and Carrick joined them soon after, overjoyed to see Ana and Christian having already arrived, the food following shortly behind.

"Will you show me where the bathroom is?" Ana leaned into Christian.

"I'll show you," Mia was quick to reply before Christian had a chance. Christian and Ana eyed each other. "Oh come on," she groaned, "it's not like I'm going to tell her all of your dirty dark secrets." She glanced at Kate. "Are you coming?"

"No, I'm good." Kate replied distractedly. She was talking to a well-known tennis player in the Seattle area that was dating one of Ethan's friends. Ana had heard enough to know the woman was fantastic and would soon be known by the rest of the country, if not world. Ana knew that Kate was working her magic on getting an interview and wasn't about to risk it for a bathroom break.

"I'll be fine," Ana reassured Christian as she stood, the rest of the men standing as she and Mia did. Ana blinked for a moment and then forced herself to keep moving on. Right as she was beginning to get relaxed and feel like a part of the atmosphere, something would happen to remind her how out of place she was.

"Of course she'll be fine." Mia gripped Ana's hand and led her away, Ana throwing an apologetic look at Christian over her shoulder. "Thank god, I never thought we were going to get away from him."

Ana giggled as she was supposed to, Mia not picking up that it was a bit less genuine than it had been a few minutes ago. Ana wasn't looking forward to whatever Mia wanted to talk about, nor did she think Mia had any idea of why she was so hesitant to wander the halls alone. She caught Taylor's eye as they passed by the tent walls and nodded her acknowledgement.

Instead of leading to where she could see other women exciting, Mia led her up the same stairs Christian had taken her down and into what had apparently been Mia's room, though it looked a lot more habituated than Christian's had.

"Don't mind my stuff. I'm staying here until I find an apartment, but I only got back from France a couple of weeks ago and have been mostly catching up with old friends. Oh, did Christian tell you that I've been in France for the past year?"

Ana nodded. "He brought it up once, I believe, when I was asking about you." She pointed to what looked like the bathroom. "Do you mind?"

"Oh, of course not." Mia had the good grace to look embarrassed. "Go ahead. I'll be out here."

Ana was done a lot faster than she wanted. She took her time washing and drying her hands. Then she fixed her lipstick that had only gotten slightly rubbed away from eating dinner. She hadn't forgotten about it, much too unused to wearing lipstick for such a thing to occur and therefore all of her bites were careful and delicate, in an attempt to not smudge it.

"You're not going to give me the shovel talk are you?" Ana asked when she finally exited. "Do I need to be warned not to hurt your brother?"

"Oh, no!" Mia stood, clasping her hands together. "I'm so sorry! I hope I didn't worry you coming up here like this. Gosh, I made it seem like I was going to kill you and no one would find the body."

"I don't think your old bedroom is that subtle of a place to commit a murder," Ana replied.

Mia laughed and pulled Ana into a hug. It took Ana a moment to respond, arms coming around slowly and squeezing the girl in front of her. It was always interesting to remember how they were the same age, but felt like they were in completely different parts of their life. "I'm so happy Christian met you. I won't give you the whole speech like Mom did, but I just wanted you to know that I'm happy for the both of you."

Ana's smile grew stiff at her words. She should have made Christian come with her to the bathroom, even with all the good natured ribbing they would've gotten. "Thank you."

"Okay, that's all I wanted to say," Mia let her go.

"Do you need the bathroom?" Ana asked, pointing towards the room she'd just exited.

"Oh, yes," Mia said, hands fluttering around her. "You can go ahead, no need to wait for me."

Ana gave her a small smile and ducked out of the door, taking a small breath when it closed behind her. As much as she hated the conversation and what it meant, it was probably for the better, giving her even more baggage that Christian could use when they 'broke up'.

Pushing off the door Ana started down the hallway, yelping when her wrist was grabbed and she was yanked into Christian's old room, the door slamming behind her. She whirled around, her smile dropping the moment she realized it was Elena and not Christian, as she'd originally suspected. "What is your problem? You seriously need to leave me alone, this stopped being cute the second you thought it was okay to talk to me." Ana pushed by Elena, scowling when Elena stepped in front of her. "Move."

"You need to do what you're told. Christian doesn't do girlfriends and I don't know what bullshit you think this is, but you need to get out of Christian's life. Girls like you can't handle men like Christian."

"Girls like me?" Ana replied coldly, arms crossed over her chest.

"Girls who can't give Christian the type of control he needs. You'll never be enough."

Ana ignored the way that those words stabbed straight into her chest, an echo of what she'd been thinking since the moment she met him. She got lucky to have a chance, but it would never be enough. She just wasn't about to let this Elena woman think she was winning for even a moment.

"Christian is a grown man who can make decisions on his own and he certainly doesn't need you here trying to step in like you own him."

"I do own him," Elena snapped, taking another step towards Ana who, this time, couldn't stop herself from taking her own step back, hands falling to her side. "That boy is mine and I don't stand for little boys who think they can step out on their own, and I certainly won't stand for little girls that don't even know what game they're getting involved in."

"Leave." Christian's voice was cold and hard, both Ana and Elena's head whipping around to stare at him, neither one having heard the door open. He stepped inside, eyes ablaze. "I said leave."

Elena straightened up, and waved her fingers at Ana, smirk plastered on her face. "It's time for you to leave now."

Ana opened her mouth, glower in full forth but Christian cut in first, his body sliding in between her and Elena's. "I said leave, Elena." Christian stepped back and wrapped an arm around Ana's wrist to keep her from moving, his back pressed to her front. She gripped his belt buckle, relief sweeping through her body.

"What?" Elena asked, jaw hanging open. Ana peaked her head out to see Elena's once beautiful face looking like a monster, her sculpted eyebrows and red lips no looking glamorous, but as if they'd been colored on by a Crayola crayon. Elena's eyes flickered back and forth between the two of them. Ana didn't know how she expected this to go any different, but clearly it was not what she wanted. "You really think you can play this game with me, Christian? People like me and you don't get things like Ana. She's not meant for you," Elena sneered.

"I'll be the judge of that."

Elena considered Christian, her next words coming out soft, "You don't have a heart, Christian. Do you really want to hurt her?"

"I'll be the judge of that," Christian repeated, voice growing colder, brokering no argument. "Now leave. We'll talk later about how inappropriate this was."

Elena scoffed, and Ana flinched, unsure and angry at Christian's words. "I'm the one that taught you, boy. Don't think you'll ever be able to teach the master."

"Leave."

Elena stood, staring at Christian, searching to see how serious he was. Huffing when she found it, she dropped her gaze to Ana, Christian immediately following the motion and stepping to cover Ana completely from Elena's view. "Don't even look at her. In fact, never look at her again."

"Don't be so dramatic Christian," Elena said, going for a breezy tone, but coming out desperate. "I'll leave you two to it." Elena stalked out the door with a final glower.

"Are you okay?" Christian asked the moment she was gone, pulling Ana into a large chair and kneeling in front of it.

Ana nodded, staring off into the distance as her mind processed everything that the two of them said and what it meant to Christian.

"I'm sorry that I left you alone, even for a moment."

Ana nodded, arms wrapping around her stomach, eyes focusing on Christian. "How did you know?"

His hair was still neatly combed, a rare feet for the man, but his bowtie was almost completely undone and his eyes wild. "Taylor alerted me that he'd seen Elena heading in the same direction you had been. Neither one of us thought anything of it until Mia returned a few minutes ago without you saying you'd gone on ahead."

"Yeah, Elena pulled me in here to 'talk'," Ana sneered. "That woman is crazy."

"I'm sorry that you had to deal with that," Christian pulled her into a hug, Ana going willingly but angling her head so that she could look out.

"Can we go home?"

"Yeah, let's go home," Christian replied after a pause.

* * *

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	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

"What was she talking about?" Ana asked as they stepped into the penthouse, Christian a step ahead of her.

He froze at her words. "What?"

They had been silent during the majority of the ride, the only time it was broken when Christian ordered them to go straight to Escala instead of stopping at Ana's apartment. She had plenty of things there to not worry about packing a bag.

"What was she talking about?" Her words were quiet but hard. "When she said 'people like you and her'."

"I have no idea," Christian threw his hand in the air, the other reaching out and tugging on his brown locks, the gelled back smoothness giving way easily and sticking straight up when he removed his hand. "She's crazy and was just saying whatever she could to bother you. You can't let her get to you."

Ana dropped her shoes beside her, lips pressed firmly together. Finally, she met Christian's eyes, the dark lighting making the grey look almost black. "That was the very first time you lied to me." Christian opened his mouth but Ana soldered on, "Trying to get to me was when she said I would never be good enough for you or that I couldn't handle a man like you. That's just 'trying to get to me'," she made air quotes. "What's not 'trying to get to me', was when she was talking just to you. So, what did she mean when she said, 'people like _you'_."

It had been the thing most on her mind during their car ride. There were so many things wrong with that woman, but Ana did not like the way that she united Christian and her with that single phrase. Christian was nothing like Elena, and she wanted to know why either one of them thought he could be.

"I—Ana. Please, don't ask me." Christian stared at her in the entrance of the foyer, neither one of them taking a step in either direction.

"Don't ask you what, Christian?"

"Don't ask me. Please don't. If you know, you're going to go running for the hills."

Ana opened and closed her mouth, mind whirling with possibilities from him being involved in illegal trade with GEH to committing murder and Elena being the only one that knew. But none of those seemed like the man before her. "I—what? Is it that bad?"

Christian looked absolutely miserable as he nodded. Taking a few steps forward he clasped their hands together. "Don't leave me, Ana. Let's just forget about this night. I'll go and talk to Elena and she'll never bother you again. We'll never be in the same place as her again. You won't even hear her name. But please don't ask me what tonight was about."

Ana clenched her teeth together, eyes staring down at their intertwined fingers. "I'm sorry Christian… but I can't do that. Just tell me. It can't be that bad. It's not like you committed murder or something, right?" She was smiling at the end, it was forced and stiff and slid completely off her face when Christian's lips didn't even so much as twitch.

He looked at her sadly yet dejectedly. Like he'd already given up. "Promise me then, that you'll stay and listen. No matter what is said, you'll stay and listen to what I have to say, until the end, okay? I'll let you leave whenever you want, I can't make you stay. But can you please wait until I've told you everything?"

"You're freaking me out a bit here, Christian."

"Promise me."

"I promise," Ana said with no hesitation.

Christian gripped her hand even tighter. "Follow me."

They didn't share any words between each other as he led Ana up the stairs and into his bedroom. Walking over to his dresser he pulled open a drawer and then a small key Ana had never seen before. "You remember the door that was locked?"

Ana nodded. It had been a matter of curiosity when Ana had tried the door and found it wouldn't budge. She'd never gotten an official tour, Christian and her being much too distracted the first few times he took her to his apartment, but by the time that they would've had the time, she'd already been there enough to know her way around without any troubles. The place was big, but more in the terms of actual size than how many rooms it had, Christian's bathroom itself being big enough to fit her entire first apartment into.

The locked door had been a later discovery when Ana had walked by multiple times before realizing that she'd never been inside and gave the handle a try, Christian having made it more than clear that she was welcomed anywhere in his apartment. When she'd asked about it later, he had explained that it was a storage closet, something that she had believed up until that point.

"This is the key that opens it."

"You gonna go Hannibal Lecter on me now?" Ana tried for another joke.

Christian smiled indulgently though stiff, not pausing as he walked by Ana, this time taking extreme care to not touch her at all as he passed. He moved through the house at a quick pace, Ana having to almost jog to not fall behind. Christian fingered the key when he stopped in front of the unassuming door, looking at Ana for the first time since the moment that he'd picked it up. "Keep an open mind."

"Just open the door Christian," Ana snapped, fed up with the tension that Christian was creating. It was nerve wracking seeing him so full of fear when in the entire time she'd known him, he was anything but, and here he was acting like he was about to break out in hives, all because he was going to show Ana some room.

The door opened.

They entered.

Ana's jaw dropped.

"What is this place?" Ana asked when they stepped inside, her mind first wondering if she'd been right about the Hannibal Lecter comment and he was now going to kill her. But that made no sense. Christian's fear having been genuine. Ana looked over all the items in the room once again.

The first thing Ana had noticed was the color. A deep dark red covered the room, not because of paint, but because of velvet fabric on the walls that would have made the room feel like it belonged in a psychiatric ward. Except for the color. The next thing Ana noticed were all the instruments along the wall that could be used for any form of torture… or a different type of sex, Ana realized as she focused on the bed in the dead center. It was a gigantic four poster bed, with no sheets, but the mattress covered in leather, the same red tone as the rest of the room.

"This is… my playroom," Christian said from where he still stood at the entrance of the room. He hadn't moved since Ana had walked in, letting her wander the room in peace, without saying a word.

Ana's fists were tight at her side, not because of fear but because of how uncomfortable and out of place she felt—where she'd never felt it before. Despite Christian's intimidation and what she'd thought of him before she knew him, Christian had always done his best to make sure Ana felt welcomed. This room gave off the completely opposite vibe.

"How come you never showed me this before?" She faced Christian, putting her back to the room. She didn't want to see anything else.

"Do you know what it is?"

"It's a BDSM room."

Christian looked shocked, giving Ana answer enough that her assumption was correct.

Honestly, it was a bit of a guess but it was also the safest one. She'd never actually seen one, but had heard them described many a times in the romance novels that she loved to consume. Never actually thought she'd be entering into her own romance novel where her male love interest apparently practiced it. Not that Ana believed this story would end with a happily ever after.

"Do you practice?"

Ana wrinkled her nose in distaste, realizing how wrong that reaction was when she saw the hope that had been starting to appear on Christian's face disappear. "Why are you showing me now?" she asked.

Christian wrangled his fingers together. Catching the motion, he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Do you have any specific questions about this room?"

Ana looked around again, there were some things she knew such as the belts and handcuffs but there were also items that Ana could only guess their names. She swallowed and shook her head. "No, I think I get it."

"Okay, then can we please leave?"

Ana darted her head back to Christian. "You said that you were going to explain."

"I will, Ana," Christian said softly. It was a tone of voice that she'd never heard before and she absolutely hated it. Christian should never sound meek or unsure, or like he expected absolutely nothing to go his way. At the same time, Ana knew she couldn't reassure him and was glad he wasn't touching her. She needed answers. "I just—I can't concentrate when you're in here."

That had Ana blushing, coming back to the moment and how she was more or less standing in Christian's sex room. She giggled, a high pitched sound and darted out the door. "Living room?"

It was where they had more of their serious discussions, being the most neutral. When they were in the house together they normally stayed in Christian's bedroom, the library, kitchen, or his office. Even the media room on the rare occasion that they wanted to watch a movie. The living room however had only been used for conversations that were less than pleasant, and both had kept that pattern without even realizing it.

Christian nodded. He walked slowly behind her, completely at odds with the man that had rushed her to his red room, like a man on a mission who just wanted to get it over with. Like ripping a Band-Aid off.

"I showed you now—" Christian began when they were both settled on the couch. Christian had taken a moment to search over Ana's face as if memorizing the features before beginning. "—because of Elena."

"What?" That was not what she expected to hear.

"This is where I need you to listen, Ana. I'm about to tell you things that are going to make you want to run for the hills, but before you do, please promise you'll listen."

"Stop telling me what I'm going to do," Ana snapped. "Let me make my own decision. I promised I would hear you out."

Christian stared at Ana, eyes wide. A smile grew on his face. "You're always full of surprises Ms. Steele."

"Tell me, Christian. What does that room have to do with Elena?" Ana had a bad feeling about all of this, but she would let Christian take the time to explain as he needed to. As long as she got all of her answers she was fine. "What does that room have to do with me?"

"I'm a Dom, as you might have guessed," Christian said. He stood and started pacing. It made Ana even more nervous but she let him continue knowing that whatever he was about to say was hard for him. Her heart was in her throat and no matter how much she tried to calm it, it kept beating at a thunderous pace. "It's where—"

"I know what a Dom is. Just continue as you would to someone who has a basic understanding of the BDSM scene but has never participated."

Christian huffed a desperate laugh. "As crazy as it might seem, Ana, this is not something I talk about a lot."

"Don't you have to?"

"I talk about it with potential subs when we are discussing our contract." Ana's mind flashed back to when they were first discussing the rules of their relationship. She should have thought about it then but it hadn't even crossed her mind. "We both know what we're getting into and what our safe words are and are hard limits, Ana, I've never talked about this with someone who isn't involved in the lifestyle."

Ana bit her lip. Christian groaned, crossing the room in a flash to pull it from between her teeth. Ana gaped, not even having realized that she'd made the movement. She had become much more aware since she'd met him when she realized how much of a turn on it was for him, but occasionally she would fall into the old habit. She thought of him every time she caught herself biting her lip now and would do it on purpose when she was with him. It was still so ingrained that when she was in an unfamiliar situation she'd revert back to old habits in the blink of an eye.

"Sorry," Christian said, eyes darting from his thumb that was still on her lip and her eyes. "Sorry." He quickly retreated, hands going to his hair and tugging. "I just—you know how much that distracts me. Not that it gives me any right to touch you. Especially right now."

"Christian, it's fine. Just please," she waved her hand, "continue."

Christian took a shuddering breath and released it slowly. "I'm a Dom," he started again, Ana making sure to keep her mouth shut, and lips pressed firmly together. "I take on submissives that I have vetted and we have both come to a mutually agreeable arrangement. There is a contract that is presented to the submissive with rules and limits that she will let me know if she agrees to and then provides her own. This is an entirely safe and sane agreement where no one goes into it not knowing what's happening. Communication is key within a BDSM relationship or we would have no relationship at all."

Ana nodded. "Your guys' communication is probably better than an average couple."

" _Yes_ ," Christian said, eyes lighting up. "It's so that everyone knows exactly where they stand and what to expect. You have complete control."

 _Oh_ , Ana realized.

"And where does Elena come into this?"

"You're okay with all this?"

"I'm not going to be calling you a freak because you like a different type of sex," Ana said, point blankly. "I still want the full story though."

"She was my Dom when I was younger." That certainly caught Ana's attention. She held back the 'what' she wanted to snap, instead waving for Christian to continue. "I told you about my birth mother and Grace adopting me." He paused. "Grace was the best thing that ever happened to me in my life but it doesn't mean that I was the best thing that happened to her.

"I can't stand to be touched… You know this. I'm okay with certain areas, but when it comes to my chest and back, I can't handle it at all and react violently when I am touched." He swallowed. "I was worse when I was younger. I wouldn't let anyone touch me at all and as a result I was a touch starved kid who would get into fights just because it was physical contact." Ana inhaled sharply. Christian refused to meet her gaze, instead staring down at his clenched fists.

"As you can imagine I got into a lot of trouble because of all the fights. I was out of control, just a mad kid who had no idea how to let his emotions out or what he wanted in life. Elena changed that."

"How?"

"Elena's the one that introduced me to BDSM. She gave me a way to regain control."

Oh. "What? How old were you?"

Christian hesitated. Ana's heart dropped knowing that no matter what answer he gave it wasn't going to be eighteen, which was already bad enough. "Fifteen."

Ana cursed. "Jesus Christ Christian. You're still friends with her? You consider her a friend?" Ana's lip curled in distaste.

"Please," Christian cut in. "You said you'd let me finish."

Ana nodded, but kept her body stiff, letting her displeasure be known. She couldn't decide between fury or pity but she needed to know more before she could settle on a proper course of action. "I don't really think there's any way that you can redeem Elena in my eyes." There hadn't been before Ana knew this and their certainly wasn't now.

Ana listened in displeasure as Christian described how Elena had lured him into her house and given him promises and made him believe that he was fucked up, not that she was the one with the problem who thought it was okay to manipulate a child into thinking he deserved everything she handed him. Who made him feel like he needed it. She couldn't believe that the man in front of her had gone through something like this, and worse, still didn't understand it.

"Why are you defending her? She raped you."

"She didn't rape me Ana. I was a consenting and willing participant. You don't understand. For people like me, we need control and she showed me a way to gain it. I owe her everything!" Christian was agitated, hands twitching at his side.

Ana wondered if this was the first time he had ever told anyone his story. She sucked her lips between her teeth. "She didn't—she didn't give you anything besides making you think that you needed her. How would you feel if I told you that when I was fifteen one of my father's friend's seduced me and we'd been in a relationship for four years?"

"Ana—that's hardly the point."

"How?" Ana threw her hands out in front of her. "How?"

"I went into it willingly, Ana! Hell, I asked for it. I needed it or I would not be where I am right now."

"Did she convince you of that?"

"She didn't need to when it's the truth." Christian had stopped pacing at this point and was staring at Ana with a mixture of desperation and anger.

"That's more fucked up than I thought," Ana finally settled on saying.

Christian perked up, the movement so slight that Ana wouldn't have been able to recognize him if she didn't know him so well. "So you're not leaving?"

"Where do I come into all of this?" Ana asked instead. She wasn't going to get through to Christian in something that he'd thought true his entire life in just a few brief minutes.

"You were my first vanilla relationship," Christian admitted softly.

* * *

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	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

"Vanilla?"

"It means a normal relationship. One without any BDSM elements involved."

"Oh." He'd said during his explanation of Elena how he became a Dom directly after subbing for her and how she was the one to find the girls for him, something that she apparently did for many clients. It hadn't crossed her mind that Christian meant every one of his relationships were through her. "You never… with anyone else? Not even when you first stopped subbing for Elena?" She felt vial just saying those words.

"You were my first. I never planned for you not to be either. That first night when I was taking you back to the hotel I planned on discussing with you the possibility of being my sub. I didn't think you had any experience but I was willing to train you, I wanted you so much." He shook his head with a small grin. "There's just something about you, Ana, that has always been drawing me in."

"That's why you didn't want me to drink," Ana said as it dawned on her.

"I don't sleep with women who are incapacitated," Christian said, then sheepishly added, "but yes, that was the main reason. I wasn't actually planning on sleeping with you at all. I wanted you clear headed as we discussed the contract. I planned to use the weekend for negotiation…but things got carried away as they normally do between us." Christian grinned roguishly, Ana's face heating up.

That night had been simply magical, the tension that was coming off them was something Ana had never felt before and had known she'd never get another opportunity. Or so she had thought at the time. It filled her with pleasure and a sort of happy glee to know that Christian had been planning on sleeping with her from the very beginning. Or at the very least, that was always his end goal. That every single time she ran into him was not a coincidence or him just checking about the article—but because he wanted her.

"I was just as surprised as you were when we woke up in that hotel room the following morning. I decided to discuss the contract with you after you woke up but then you went and sneaked out."

"I wasn't sneaking!" Ana giggled. "I thought we were done for the night. Day. Whatever."

"When will you learn Ms. Steele, that I am never done with you."

Ana gulped, heat traveling straight down to her core. She wriggled in her seat, glaring half-heartedly at Christian's knowing look.

"So there I was having to chase you down again only when I did find you… I couldn't take my hands off you. Again." He shook his head. "I don't know what it is about you, Ms. Steele but every time I found myself in your presence, all rational thought leaves my head.

"I'd always thought I would never be capable of having vanilla sex. Then I went and met you and that changed without me ever really making a conscious choice."

"Do you regret it?" Ana asked hesitantly. She didn't think he did based off the way he was speaking, but that last comment was a bit too rueful for Ana's taste and had her insecurities coming out of the cracks they'd been pressed into over the past few months of having Christian's undivided attention.

Christian stared at Ana, not answering right away. Her stomach dropped. "I didn't think I would. There was a part of me that thought after our first time it was just a fluke and the next time things would go back to normal and I wouldn't be able to handle it or you'd touch me. But the sex just kept getting better and better."

"What do you mean, worried that I'd touch you?"

"I keep subs restrained at all times while in the playroom."

"And while you're not in the playroom?" That word felt so weird, knowing they were talking about the room that Christian had sex in.

"I don't sleep with women outside of the playroom Ana. I haven't since it was installed. Except with you. I don't think you understand how much I changed all of my rules when you came into the picture."

Ana took a seat on the couch, pulling her knees up to her chest. "I'm starting to," she said quietly to herself.

"Part of the reason I know this lifestyle is for me is because I worry that my partners will touch me if they're not otherwise restrained."

"Do you ever not restrain them?"

"Never. I don't trust them not to touch me."

Except Ana.

"I thought this whole relationship was about trust. You trust them enough to honor their contract, but not listen to you when you say don't touch them?"

"It's the only way," Christian replied.

Ana didn't like how that sounded, Elena's presence seeming to be creeping into their conversation once more, without him truly noticing. Ana fought the anger again at knowing how much control that woman had over him and how much deeper it went than Ana had ever suspected.

"So?"

Ana frowned at Christian's sudden question. "So what?"

"Will you?"

"Will I what? You haven't asked a question here, Christian."

"Would you consider subbing for me?"

Ana's mouth opened and closed wanting to laugh and simultaneously cry at how much of an idiot Christian could be. For one of the smartest men Ana had ever met, he was turning out to be incredibly dense when it came to matters of the heart. She hated knowing Elena and Christian's birth mother played such a pivotal role in making that possible, and knowing that for as much of a positive influence Grace has been in Christian's life, it wasn't a match to Elena's manipulation.

"I couldn't do that," Ana said. "I wouldn't be adverse to you tying me up at some point but that's probably it." She hesitated. "Is that going to be a problem?"

"When I first met you I would have said yes," Christian admitted. "That was why I was planning on persuading you to be my sub. It would have been my first time training someone—I'd never desired to before. I wanted all of my subs to be broken in and know exactly what they were getting into. I didn't want any…" he chuckled, "virgins."

Ana cracked a smile. "You weren't expecting that were you?"

"Not at all. I find myself incredibly pleased knowing I was your first and always will be, no matter who comes after me."

"Caveman."

"Just for you." He cleared his throat. "But you would be willing to give it a try?"

"We're just talking about a few things right? Like hand cuffs or whatever? Not me actually being your sub?"

Christian nodded.

Ana sobered. "Where do you see our relationship going?" It had been on her mind all night, everything just coming together at once. From Elena and whatever her problem was to where they stood in general. The biggest conundrum came from the realization that Ana didn't want to fake break up. She wanted to date. Real date. Not this fake, but not fake thing, they had going on.

Christian frowned, seeming to recognize the change in the room. "Beyond incorporating a few new elements, I don't see it changing at all. I don't see how it needs to, you've always been very open to new ideas. Nothing needs to change." He swallowed, his throat bobbing at the movement, the only sign of his unease. He kept a relaxed stance, expression open and kind.

"I don't think I can do that anymore Christian."

Christian froze, all expression disappearing off his face before Ana could even blink. "What do you mean?"

"I don't think I can keep this façade going anymore."

"Is this because of what I just told you?"

"No, of course not." This was a whole lot of everything in just a short amount of time. Her timing was horrible, but if she didn't say something now she'd just keep talking herself out of it. Tonight had become the night of confessions and who was she to go against the rules. "This is about us and where we're going."

"Going? Ana, we're not going anywhere, nothing has to change. We already made our agreement."

"And agreements change."

"Are you trying to change it?"

Ana huffed. Trust Christian to take this moment to be dense. "Yes, Christian, I am."

She saw panic in Christian's expression but didn't back down. The second the words were out of her mouth she knew she'd made the right decision. Ever since she had met Christian she'd been living in a bit of a fantasy, seeing Christian as just that. An unattainable prize that she had somehow won, and the fact that it was only a friends with benefits relationship—or just sex, as they had first agreed upon—was the most she could expect. She was after all, just Anastasia Steele, a nobody from the state of Washington that went to WSU and happened to get lucky by interviewing Christian Grey.

Since the beginning of her crush Ana had known that she didn't know anything about him, just the things he wanted to show the world, things that could be easily manipulated. She'd claimed the crush more as a joke then actual truth, something for all the staff at the newspaper to laugh about and bring them together. An article about Christian Grey was recently published? Ana could bet that someone would be bringing in the article and sharing it with everyone, but most importantly her. New photos? They'd be printed out and stuck up all around Ana's work space. Of course she liked to look at them, but she hadn't actually meant it.

Until she met Christian Grey himself and everything changed. He was no longer this arbitrary object that she admired from afar, but didn't see as an actual person who was capable of emotions—so many emotions. Emotions that made a man that she was more than capable of falling in love with.

"I want an actual relationship," Ana found herself saying. She was strangely calm. Whatever happened, happened, and she knew she was making the right decision for herself. "One where we are boyfriend and girlfriend. Where we spend the night at each other's house and meet the family and hang out with the family."

"We can do that Ana, that's what we're doing. Why do we need to put a label on this? That's basically what we've been doing—I've been trying to convince you to spend the night, you're the one that insists on leaving."

"A relationship that could lead to love and marriage and maybe even children, Christian."

That caught Christian off guard. He cut himself off mid rant, staring at Ana with something akin to dawning horror. "You're in love with me."

Ana's stomach clenched and she was brought back to a brief conversation they had when driving home from work one time. Ana jokingly said the four letter word when Christian handed her tea just the way she liked it as soon as she got in the car. The words had slipped out of her mouth without a second thought. She wouldn't have thought of it again if it weren't for his tight declaration that he wasn't capable of love and not to think that would change. She had changed the subject quickly after that, recognizing the dangerous territory they were treading on and not wanting to cross boundaries.

Now she was.

"I don't love you Christian. Yet." She swallowed, fingers clenched tightly together. "But I could see myself falling in love with you very easily. Especially if we keep going the way we are."

"Then we won't continue as we are," Christian said. "We'll rewrite our rules and make sure that it's clear where we stand, no emotions will get involved Ana. It'll be perfect, you'll see. Just as long as you don't fall in love with me."

So long as she didn't fall in love with him since he had no worries about falling in love with her. Christian must have seen something in her eyes, his expression shuddering. "Ana. Please. You can't fall in love with me. I'm not capable of love."

Ana chuckled wetly, embarrassed by the stinging behind her ears. She took a deep breath and forced the tears back. "Is that something that Elena told you?"

"Ana, don't bring Elena into this."

"Is it true?" Ana asked again.

Christian hesitated, giving Ana all the answer she needed. That woman was way too involved in his life and he didn't even see it.

"Did she tell you that you can't be loved? That you don't deserve it? That you're so fucked up no one could ever want you?" Her eyes hardened. "That you're a _monster_?"

Christian flinched.

Ana softened. "Christian, you know it's not true. There is no one in the world that I wouldn't think is more capable of love than you."

He shook his head, desperation in each movement. "Ana, you can't. I don't have a heart to love anyone with."

"You can't actually believe that."

"It's not something to believe or not believe. It's the truth."

Ana took a shuddering breath. "So you think I can't love you?"

"I don't deserve your love."

"Christian we're one step off from saying I love you," Ana said in exasperation. It was the truth. They had been for a while. The way they were always dancing around each other and talking. They had been dating for all this time, only neither one of them were willing to use the word, or in Ana's case, deluding herself into believing that it was only them being friends. You don't take your sex buddy onto a boat and call it casual sex. Casual sex is done at home or meaningless places, not on a boat with everything catered. Casual sex friends does not include meeting the family or going to a family event. They had done all of those things and more.

Christian froze. "Do you love me?"

"What?" She thought they had already established that. They were on a Ferris wheel.

Taking a step towards her, he grabbed her shoulders tightly, eyes staring desperately at hers. "Do you love me?"

"I—I don't know, Christian," she pushed away, swiping a hand through her hair. "What is this about?"

"You can't love me."

Ana gaped. "I can't love you? What the hell does that mean? Of course I can! You're incredibly lovable and how the hell was I not supposed to fall in love with you?"

"If you love me Ana, we can't keep doing this."

Ana's jaw dropped but a part of her was glad that he finally had said it and stopped dancing around the subject. She stood. "I guess that's it then."

Christian lurched forward, hand reaching out before seeming to catch himself. "You're leaving?"

"I have to. There's nowhere else for us to go." She felt morose saying it, an ending that Ana did not want for her relationship with Christian. She hoped when she thought back on it in the future, she remembers the good times and not the bitter end.

"You don't need to leave, Ana." Christian took three shaky steps towards her, eyes alight. "You're making something out of nothing. We're completely fine the way we are. Don't go messing up something that doesn't need to be."

The man was full of contradictions, never seeming to know what he wanted. As much as she pitied him and felt for him with the past that he had to endure, she had to do what was right for her. Ana faced Christian with a sad smile. "If you really think that, it's even more reason that I need to leave."

"You can't leave Ana. You called this home."

Ana wrinkled her nose. "What are you talking about? You just said—"

"Tonight, at the gala. You called Escala home."

Ana chuckled, the sound dying out when she realized how serious Christian was. "It was a slip of the tongue, Christian. Come on."

"It might have been a slip of the tongue but that doesn't mean that it's any less true."

"What are you saying?"

"I want you to move in with me. I want this to be home for you too. You make here feel like home and I hate it when you're not here with me, even if you're not in the same room as me, I like knowing you're here."

Ana stared slack jawed at Christian. She never expected to see the always put together business man looking so frazzled and… desperate. If this was any other point in the time they had spent together it would be filling her with glee to know that Christian was so desperate to keep her in his life, he would talk about moving in. "You can't say things like that, Christian!" What happened to the man that just told her that she needed to leave if she loved him? Was he not putting this together?

"Why not? It's true." He grabbed her hand, Ana reluctantly letting him move her into his space.

"You want me to move in but you still won't have a relationship with me?"

"I can't do love, Ana. I can try for a relationship but I can't ever love you."

Ana wanted to break down in tears and beg for Christian to love her, each time he said that it wasn't possible felt like a stab through her heart. Was she really that unlovable? She was practically offering herself up on a silver platter. "Christian, you're not getting my point here."

"Is love that important?"

" _Yes_." She couldn't believe that Christian thought even for a moment that it was logical for her to move in with him.

"Please, Ana," his grip was so tight Ana was starting to lose pressure in her hands. She shook them and he reluctantly relaxed his grip but didn't let go. "Please stay. We can talk about this in the morning. It's been a late night. We'll sleep on it."

"Sleeping on it isn't going to change anything. Would you ever be able to love me?"

He shook his head despondently.

"Then that's your answer." She pulled her hands away and grabbed her purse that had been left on one of the many side tables.

"Ana."

Ana whirled, hand flying out and hating the way that Christian flinched back the moment she moved so rapidly. "I'm not leaving because of you." Her hand dropped to her side but she continued on, knowing that she couldn't leave Christian with any misunderstandings. "I'm not leaving because of what you said or because I think you're messed up. If I were anyone else, it wouldn't matter at all and we could keep going. I'm doing this because of me. To protect me."

"I'm not going to hurt you Ana."

Ana's eyes watered. "You are too easy to fall in love with and I'm not going to set myself up for heartbreak in a relationship that's doomed before it's even started." _Because you won't let it_ , Ana left unsaid. "I need to do what's right for me."

She didn't stop as she walked towards the elevator, Christian hot on her heels. "Are you breaking up with me?"

Ana laughed incredulously. " _Christian_."

"Ana." He grabbed her hand before she could call for the elevator. "We're not breaking up. It was just supposed to be for my parents, not for real. We're still supposed to keep going as we are."

Ana stared. She squeezed his hand. "I'm sorry. I think this is for the best. It's time that I wake up, and get back to the real world and I think it's time you got some help. Your relationship with Elena is not normal. She's a horrible woman who has sunk her claws in you so deep you can't even see the mark. I'm sorry that I can't be the one to help you, but maybe it's for the better."

"Anastasia."

Ana shook her head sadly, slipping her hand out of Christian's and pressing the elevator door. It slid open. Christian didn't stop her as she knew he wouldn't. He didn't actually believe the words he was saying. At this point he was grasping at straws and they both knew it. "When you've stepped back into reality, call me," Ana said.

The elevator doors slid shut.

* * *

 **... Yep. I did it. Look forward to hearing all of your guys reactions. A day early to make up where I left you last time, but next update will still be Wednesday.**

 **Honestly, this was one of my favorite moments in the book. I started the series just wanting to see what the hype was all about and was like, I'll only read the first book. But then I got to the end of it and HAD to continue. lol**

* * *

 **(If you want to sign up for my newsletter to be the first to know details about my first book (please do!) you can find the link to my website through any of my social media platforms where it will be. But if you use Facebook there's a link there that'll take you straight to the sign up form for the newsletter)**

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	18. Chapter 18

**So quick apology about this being a day late. But here it is! Also, there was a slight confusion in the last chapter with the final line. Ana was supposed to have said it, not Christian. I have since gone back and cleared it up. Sorry about that!**

* * *

Chapter 18

"Christian, what are you doing?" Elliot asked, marching into his penthouse like he owned the place. He paused in the entrance of the living room when he saw Christian sitting on his couch wearing a pair of shorts and t-shirt that had seen better days. Christian knew he smelt awful. He was wearing the same outfit he'd worked out in that morning, the sweat finally dry, but did nothing for the scent. "Man, you look awful."

Christian chuckled, the sound hoarse and bitter. "Thanks."

"What the heck happened to you? Mom's been worried. You left early from the Gala, which no one was really surprised about, but then we don't hear a single word from you and whenever Mom or Mia call work they say you haven't been in all week."

"That's because I haven't been in all week."

Elliot snorted, but it did nothing to hide the concern in his posture or expression, despite trying to make light of the mood. "Come on, Christian. You've never skipped a day of work in your life."

"Well, things change," Christian said, almost petulantly.

"Christian, are you okay?" Elliot asked, not trying to keep the genuine worry from his voice this time. He moved inside the room so he could sit down on the coffee table in front of Christian, who looked away the moment he sat there. Christian could see his nose crinkle in distaste at the smell but didn't say anything otherwise. "What happened? Everything was good."

"Ana broke up with me," Christian said, staring off at the skyline. It was raining, making it look like he was in the clouds, the grey outdoors doing nothing to help lighten the dim room. He hadn't turned on the lights a single time since Ana had left. Hadn't done much since Ana had left other than work out and stare out the window. Occasionally he'd eat, when his body wouldn't function otherwise due to the lack of substance. Showers were only when he couldn't stand the smell surrounding his body but they were always ice cold.

He knew he was punishing himself and it wasn't healthy but it was all he could do. For a brief moment he had thought of calling Elena before shoving that thought entirely out of his head. This entire situation had begun because she wasn't capable of minding her own business. If she had kept her mouth shut and stayed out of Ana's line of sight the two of them would still be together and Christian's life could've continued on as it had been.

His life had changed so much since they first met. He'd known it from the beginning, but hadn't taken a moment to step back and see the changes until she was no longer in it. There was a reason he desperately wanted to keep her in his life. He'd known it would be chaos without her there. He would have offered her the world. Would have given her anything. Except, apparently he couldn't, because she wanted nothing besides the one thing he couldn't offer.

He deserved the punishment. Knew she was right to break up with him. She deserved so much better than him. He didn't deserve her and he would have to live with the little slice of heaven he'd had. Even if it was just for a moment.

"Jesus, Christian. I'm sorry," Elliot said, staring at Christian in pity.

He hated it. Had been part of the reason he refused to show his face at work. He hadn't felt so out of control since he was a teenager getting in fights desperate for human connection, even if that was only a fist hitting his face. Right now, he had to deal with the looks from Taylor and Gail, each time that they saw him to ask if he was ready for work, or what he wanted to eat. For a man that claimed to have the upmost control, the upmost discipline, he had none after Ana walked out of his life. He couldn't stand to face his staff right now. Couldn't stand the idea of work continuing on, when everything else should have stopped.

"She's better off without me," Christian said.

"What happened, Christian," Elliot asked, ignoring Christian's statement. "You two were doing so well."

"We weren't real."

Elliot frowned. "You're losing me here."

Christian shook his head and stood, glancing at his brother as he passed by. He was wearing his usual construction gear of worn jeans and a jacket, this time relatively clean, meaning that they hadn't done any hard lifting today, most likely due to the weather. Christian moved into the kitchen, pulling out a bottle of water. He desperately wanted alcohol, but he never allowed himself to drink when he was upset, way too reminiscent of his younger days.

He tossed one to Elliot, who had taken a seat at the barstool. "Ana and I were never dating."

Elliot scoffed, clearly disbelieving any of Christian's words. "For never dating, you two seemed pretty serious."

"We weren't dating," Christian said with a glare. "We were just…having fun and seeing where things would take us. You were never supposed to know about her, but then Mom came over with Elena, and you know how she is. Will never leave you alone."

"Okay… so did you and Ana break up, or just end the sleeping part of your relationship?"

"Everything." The bottle squeaked in Christian's hand as he pressed too hard. "We were supposed to break up this weekend. That was why we went to the ball. So that we could stage a breakup afterwards and we'd go on with the sleeping portion of our relationship, but you guys would think Ana was no longer in the picture."

"I take it that didn't happen."

"She decided we had to break up for real."

"Why?" Elliot asked, though it was clear that he still didn't believe Christian's words.

Christian tugged at his hair. He'd been pulling at it all week, making it stand straight up the entire time. Once upon a time he would have cared, but now, he left it, despite how much it made him think of Ana. She had admitted to liking how it looked when it was messy and he found himself leaving it rumpled on purpose instead of fixing it whenever she was over. Sometimes even when she wasn't.

"Because I'm incapable of loving her," he finally responded.

Elliot stared at him. Then stared some more. Then promptly burst out laughing. "Christian, you're an idiot. Call her back already so you two can make up and you can get over your moping." Christian grew more and more uncomfortable as his laughter continued, before finally trickling to a stop, Elliot sobering quickly. "Christian, you can't be serious."

"Just leave Elliot," Christian snapped, backing away and heading to his office, throwing his words over his shoulder. "I'll be back at work next week like nothing happened. I'd prefer it if you were the one to tell Mom that Ana and I aren't dating. Hopefully they'll be over it by the time I show up at our next family dinner."

"Christian," Elliot called, doing the exact opposite of what Christian wanted and followed him into his office, ignoring Christian's glower.

Christian sat behind his desk and opened his laptop, staring blankly at the chart he'd been working on before leaving for the gala and hadn't looked at since.

"What are you talking about, Christian? There's no way you and Ana could have faked that relationship. I've had a few fake dates sometimes, I'll admit it, but none of them have ever looked at me the way Ana looked at you."

"Ana's ability to love has nothing to do with this," Christian responded. If anything it was the root of the problem. She might have denied loving him a week ago, but the way she looked at him, he knew it was a lie. Women fell in love with him all the time, a fault when it came to his physical appearances. He knew he was an attractive man, and it left people in his wake thinking they had a right to him just because they were attracted to him.

The only difference with Ana, was that he wanted her just as bad. But would never be able to return her love.

"Christian, you're clearly in love with this girl," Elliot said incredulously.

"No I'm not. I'm not capable of love."

Elliot gaped at him. "I don't know where you got this notion, but you gotta get rid of it."

"Do you think I love you?"

Elliot balked, clearly taken aback, before his expression shuttered and he glared. "Yes, Christian, I do. You might not show it by being openly affectionate, but none of us have ever doubted your love for us. You are a man that shows his love by how much you can give and we all wish you realized all we want is you. We understand and accept everything because we know it's you telling us that you love us, doesn't mean we need it to know."

"That's not—"

"True?" Elliot asked, eyebrows raised. "What's the name of your boat?"

Christian grit his teeth.

"The Grace, right?"

"Lots of people name their boats after their mom," Christian disputed.

"And how many people name their boat after their mom because they consider her their angel? Christian, you are the most loving man I have ever known. The only problem is that you don't know how to show it and end up showering us in things that are so well thought out and beautiful, but are just that, things." He shook his head and stepped forward, resting his hands on Christian's desk. Christian peered up over his laptop. "You might not show it the way you want to, but that doesn't mean we don't know how much you love us." Elliot laughed in amazement. "I can't believe we're arguing about this."

Christian's own lips lifted in a small smile, no matter how much he fought. Even he could see the irony of their argument.

"We love you. I love you. And we sure as heck know that you love us," Elliot said when they both quieted down.

Christian didn't say anything, accepting the words for what they were no matter how much he wanted to rage against them. He knew, theoretically, that Elliot was right. His family loved him and he cared for them a great deal. But that was his family, people that were bound by obligation to feel such emotion towards him, even if he was adopted.

"So, what is this about Ana?"

Christian shook his head. Finally closing his laptop, he nodded at Elliot to take a seat, breathing out in relief when Elliot settled. He drummed his fingers against the table, making sure his face was expressionless as he considered the words he wanted to share with his brother.

Her words were haunting him. The past week he kept hearing them over and over again in his head no matter how many times he tried to shut them out. He knew he was fucked up. He knew it. It had been said to him enough times. The fact that he could only have sex if his partner was tied up screamed it. Except for Ana. The only exception he had ever met.

He was fucked up, yet she had said that she wasn't leaving because of his previous relationship with Elena, or his need to include BDSM. In fact, she'd been open to the idea of including certain aspects. It wouldn't become the only way they had sex, that would've been counter intuitive, when Christian only needed it for one reason, which was moot when Ana was involved.

Taylor appeared in the doorway, eyes scanning Christian quickly, a habit he'd gained the past week. Neither he, nor Gail had taken the time off, no matter how much Christian insisted. "Sir, Mrs. Lincoln is on her way up."

Elliot frowned, looking back and forth between the two of them. "I don't understand why your friends with that lady. I get that she and Mom are close, but she's always creeped me out."

Christian opened his mouth to defend, then closed it when he realized he had no words to say, it was only a knee jerk reaction. He wasn't particularly inclusive in the people he allowed close and the only one who was included who was outside of his family was Elena. Even Ros was held at a distance, a careful understanding that the only thing that held them together was work.

Christian nodded his head towards Taylor who disappeared once more, most likely headed to direct Elena to their location.

Elliot scowled. "So you let her in, but not me?"

Christian stood, running his hand through his hair, attempting to smooth it down. "I didn't invite either one of you in, if you would recall." He started to make his way around his desk, then paused, thinking over the last time he'd seen Elena and the havoc it had wrecked on his life. Thought about how furious Ana had been when she found out Elena's true relationship to him. He eyed Elliot, wondering how he would felt if it was his brother in his shoes. "What would you say if I told you… that I had sex with Elena when I was fifteen years old. And continued to have sex with her for the next four years."

He wasn't sure why he let the words out. It hadn't been his plan and he wasn't sure if he was ready for the shit storm he'd just opened up. Part of him figured his life was already fucked up, might as well go for broke. What he hadn't expected was the relief he felt the moment he spoke. He'd never felt like they were bottled up and he was just waiting for the right person to tell. Him sleeping with Elena never felt like a secret, despite it being just that. If he ever told someone what had gone on between him and Elena, her world would be over. It was at that moment that Christian realized how much control he had when he'd gone his entire life trying to get himself away from her own. Even after he'd stopped subbing for her, he had to fight to make sure that she didn't try to control his life. He had thought he'd succeeded and it was part of why she was so welcomed. He was starting to see she still had as much control as ever, he was just an idiot who fell for her manipulations. He was only a week too late.

The words were spoken. His secret was out. Christian's eyes flicked up, taking in with a detached sort of satisfaction the spreading look of shock and horror on Elliot's face.

"What. The. Fuck."

Christian opened his mouth to explain—where to begin, he didn't know, but he still needed to try—when Elena walked in, a pleased smile on her face.

"Christian, darling—"

Elliot's jaw snapped up and he whirled around, the surprise on his face replaced with cold fury. "Get out," he snarled to Elena who stuttered to a stop, looking between the two of them in confusion.

"Excuse me?"

"Don't look at him." Elliot stepped into her line of sight, blocking Elena from Christian's view. "Get out. Get away from here. If I ever see you anywhere near my brother or my family ever again, I'll…" He ground his teeth together. "I don't even know what I'll do because you won't have another opportunity since you'll be spending the rest of your life in jail. I am this close to strangling you."

Understanding and rage crossed Elena's face, along with a small trace of apprehension that was soon gone. Elena giggled. "I don't know what you're talking about Elliot or what your brother's been saying to you but—"

"Don't even think about calling my brother a liar." Elliot stepped forward, straightening his back and widening his shoulders.

Elena's lips twisted into a sneer and she moved, attempting to go around Elliot but he caught her by the wrist, his grip so hard Elena yelped in pain and grabbed his hand in an attempt to loosen it. Elliot returned her sneer just as beautifully. "Get out."

"Well played Christian." Elena turned her face to Christian. "I don't care who you think you are, but you're going about this all wrong if you think this is going to get you back in my good graces. I know you broke up with that little girl, good riddance, and this is no way to treat me if you expect my help."

Elliot barked an incredulous laugh. "You're delusional." He shoved her back, not caring as she tripped on her heels and fell on the carpet. "He doesn't need your help, you fucking rapist."

Elena's expression shuttered and it was at that moment Christian realized despite Elliot's previous warnings, she hadn't thought he was telling the truth. Hadn't thought that Christian had finally confessed. She had lived her entire life never worried about Christian revealing their history because she had him so wrapped under her thumb. Or so she had thought. Christian was only now realizing it and he couldn't really say it had been his decision but more of a split second thought, wondering what would happen if he did tell, and then doing it.

He hid his smile at how quickly his brother had responded, not needing more of an explanation from Christian before leaping to his defense. He had always looked up to his brother, but as someone to aspire to be. He'd never seen him as his savior. But in this moment he was incredibly grateful to stand behind his big brother and let him protect Christian from the monster under his bed.

This time the apprehension on her face couldn't be hidden. "Now, Elliot," Elena said through a forced laugh. "There's no reason to get hasty with your accusations. We can all work this out."

"There's nothing to work out," Elliot said, stance threatening.

"Sir?" Taylor asked from the doorway, neither one of them noticing when he entered the room. He took a few steps forward so he was between Elena and the two men, his posture indicating that he considered her the threat, despite the fact that Elena was on the ground. Christian swallowed, knowing that if it was anyone else, Taylor would never have hesitated to protect them, even if it was his boss he was doing the protecting from. Had everyone else seen the horror that Elena was besides him?

"Get her out of here," Elliot said.

Taylor looked between the two of them, Christian having watched the whole thing without a single word himself. Catching Taylor's eye, he nodded, watching as Elena was pulled off the ground, none too gently and manhandled out of the office screaming all the way.

"I'll make sure to take her off the list," Taylor said, over her screeches, not even phased by the woman pulling at his arms.

Christian nodded his agreement. Denying her access to the penthouse was only one of the first steps to getting her out of his life.

Elliot closed the office door behind Taylor and turned to face Christian. It was at that moment that he realized exactly what he'd said and all the consequences that would go with it. He didn't regret it.

"Christian," Elliot said softly, the words snapping Christian back to the present.

Christian sank to the ground, like his strings had been cut. He rested his head against his knees, hearing and feeling Elliot moving to sit next to him.

"What the hell, Christian?" he asked in a quiet whisper.

Christian breathed in shakily, swallowing the frog in his throat and started his story, explaining in more detail than he'd ever thought he'd reveal. He'd thought about telling his family before, but even then he always planned to keep the BDSM out of his tale but at this moment he kept absolutely nothing back. Sharing the entire story with his brother, feeling him get tenser and tenser at his side, but not letting himself pause because Christian knew if he did, he'd never start again.

"Jesus Christ," Elliot said when Christian was done. He finally looked up, noting his brothers red and tear stained face. Elliot sniffed, wiping at his nose, meeting Christian's gray eyes. "Jesus. I'm going to kill that woman. Everything that she put you through. That she made you feel."

"I asked for it—"

"You didn't ask for a single thing," Elliot said sharply. "You were a fifteen-year-old kid, who yeah, might have liked the idea of sex, but that was all Elena. No one—Jesus, that woman is sick as fuck. How would you feel if that was Mia? If we found out that one of Dad's friends had been sleeping with her since she was fifteen—but it was okay, 'cause she wanted it?"

Christian faltered at the comparison. Ana had made the same one and he'd brushed it away almost instantly. This time he couldn't stop his hands clenching at the thought of his sister falling in the hands of someone like Elena. Or if it had been Elliot that had experienced it. There was a sick sort of relief he felt that it had been him. Better to fuck up the fucked up kid even more, than one of the golden children. But he knew Elliot would never want to hear that.

"It's called statutory rape for a reason Christian," Elliot continued. "You were too young to give consent, even if you thought you could. This isn't some eighteen-year-old with a fifteen-year-old. This is a woman over half your age. She knew what she was doing. This wasn't your fault. You didn't ask for it no matter what she made you think."

Christian tugged at his hair. "Elliot," he groaned.

"You still see Flynn, right?" Elliot asked suddenly, naming Christian's therapist.

"Why?"

"Does he know about this?"

Christian frowned, knowing where this was going. "Yes."

"And what does he say?"

"What you said, more or less."

"And Ana?" Elliot asked, wisely not commenting on Christian's response. Everything about Ana had been a part of Christian's tale and he was happy there would be no more lies between him and his brother.

"The same thing, basically." He was sure he wouldn't have heard the end of it from her, if she had chosen to stay as he wanted.

"She didn't leave because of this, right?" Elliot asked, voice sounding horrified.

Christian pressed his eyes tightly shut. "No. No. I told her everything but… it didn't work out. I wanted her to try and sub for me."

"Christian, you're an idiot," Elliot said disbelievingly.

"That's not why she left." Christian sat back, staring off at the closed door. They hadn't heard anything else from Taylor but he was certain to get whatever information he needed as soon as the two of them exited. "I told you why she left. She wanted a real relationship, one that I can't provide."

"Is this whole unable to love thing that Elena told you?" Elliot asked, anger beginning to creep back into his voice.

"It's—you wouldn't understand, Elliot. People like us, we're not meant for relationships."

"That's bullshit and you know it. There are so many people within the community that are in perfectly consensual, sane, safe, monogamous relationships."

"I'm not talking about that."

"You cannot compare yourself to Elena," Elliot said, reaching out and grabbing Christian's hand and squeezing tight. "You're nothing like that woman and what she's capable of has nothing to do with you. You treated Ana like your wife. Forget about this love nonsense, everyone has to figure out if they can love their partner, but you are more than willing to treat Ana like your girlfriend. You were doing way more than that."

"No, I wasn't." Christian frowned in confusion.

Elliot rolled his eyes, looking at Christian in exasperation. "You have never taken another woman out on your boat. Nor introduced anyone to the family before."

"That wasn't supposed to happen."

"You weren't forced to bring her to dinner," Elliot continued on, ignoring Christian's words. "That was all you. You want her in your life. Do you not?"

"I do," Christian replied immediately.

"You treat her better than most people do their girlfriend. No wonder she was getting confused. The both of you were giving some serious mixed signals if apparently it was only supposed to be a friends with benefit relationship. You wouldn't be this heartbroken if that's all it was."

"I'm not heartbroken," Christian muttered petulantly.

Elliot snorted. "Yeah. Tell that to someone who believes you."

Silence descended upon them, Christian thinking over Elliot's words and the woman that had started all of this. The only thing consistent in his thoughts was how much he missed having her in his life. "I want her back."

"You'd better." Elliot paused, seeming to mull over his next words before saying, "But I don't think right now is a good time."

Christian's head snapped up.

"We need to talk about this, Christian. It's not going to go away. We need to deal with it as a family and right now that needs to be our main priority."

"So you're going to dump Kate?" Christian asked snidely.

"No. But I'm going to make sure that she understands something is going on in the family that I need to take care of. We need to handle this like we should have years ago. We can't hide from this. You need to get better, before you can focus on getting Ana back. She left you for a legitimate reason. Not something that can be fixed in a heartbeat."

Christian pressed his lips together, hating how similar they sounded to Ana's last parting words to him. "What happens if she's not there when I'm back?"

"She won't be," Elliot was quick to say. "Ana's not that type of woman. She's going to move on with her life. Working to make sure she's living her best version of herself like you need to be too. She's not the type of woman who's going to accept some half-baked job. You need to put your effort in, or you're never going to win her in the first place."

Christian leaned his head back, staring up at the ceiling, considering his brother's words, knowing they were true no matter how much he despised them. He might have Elena off his back, but there was so much more to his and Ana's relationship problems. Christian sighed. "I don't want to tell Mom and Dad."

"I'm sorry but you have to. I wish I could say you didn't, but she's Mom's best friend. She deserves to know how much Elena betrayed her trust."

Christian pressed his lips together but nodded. He wasn't going to dispute as much as he wanted to. "It's going to be awful," Christian said quietly.

"Yes, it is," Elliot responded, voice just as low and serious, his words full of assurance that he would be with him every step of the way. "You need to do this for more than just getting Ana back. She wouldn't want that for you."

Christian let out a shaky laugh at how much Elliot used Ana as motivation to get Christian to do things that was good for him. "Since when did you become the resident Ana expert?"

Elliot smirked. "I want you to get better for you, not just for Ana, and correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Ana would want that same thing."

Christian hummed to himself, silently acknowledging the truth. "I still miss her."

"None of this is going to be easy," Elliot said. "But I am incredibly proud of you."

Christian scoffed. "What's there to be proud of? I let that woman control my life for over a decade."

"But you're not letting her control the next."

Christian nodded his head, letting the words wash over him. He blinked through the wave of tears that suddenly threatened him. He was free. From this moment forward every decision that he made was for himself. He had goals that he would make and things that had to be settled.

He was free.

* * *

 **So that was the last written chapter. It was actually a complete rewrite anyway, I went a completely different direction then when I had originally intended but I really like it. Also, wasn't originally gonna show the drama between Elena and CG but liked this so much more. But so, this is basically the end. I will be including a epilogue and then two more chapters (that could be really short or my average chapter length) that will be sort of one shots that happened after this story, but I had the idea for just couldn't really rework my entire plot just for them, so those will be written.**

 **So yeah, still figuring out where I want to start up in the epilogue, but here you have it folks! Let me know thoughts. I'll continue working on this, but also my original work (which also, thanks for all the lovely comments and support for that! I can't believe it's almost here (It'll be out in Jan)) Don't know when the next update will be, but make sure you still follow if you're new here! I won't be marking this as complete just yet.**

* * *

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	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Ana looked around the lobby of GEH with wide eyes. She felt like she had all those days ago when she met Christian for the very first time. It was incredible to think about how her life had changed since then. It hadn't been too long ago that she'd only known Christian from afar. She felt so ridiculous thinking about her crush now. She'd always known it was for fun, but now that she knew the man, it felt disrespectful to think of the time when she'd claimed to love him because he was hot and she admired his business policies.

She had grown accustomed to being in Christian's presence throughout the time they'd spent together and finally been able to tame the fish out of water feeling that used to accompany her every time she was with him. She'd felt comfortable walking into his place of work, even if it wasn't often. But now that she stood here she felt unwelcomed and unwanted for an entirely different reason. She shouldn't be here at all. She should've called Christian but she'd wanted to see him in person. Make sure he seemed to be doing okay.

"Ana," a familiar voice called to her.

She felt the blood rush out of her face as she turned to see the very man that she came here to see but not so soon. The lobby was supposed to be her safe haven as she gathered her nerves. She realized belatedly how the rest of the area had quieted from Christian's presence as it often did when he entered a room.

"Christian." He looked beautiful. He stood tall and firm, his hair brushed into his usual style, eyes piercing. Ana noted Elliot and his mother standing behind him and gave them a weak smile. Her heart beat faster in her chest. She shouldn't have come.

"Ana, what are you doing here?" Christian asked, stepping forward, his hands flickering out as if to touch her before schooling himself and putting them in his pockets. His eyes scanned Ana up and down before finally settling on her eyes, a pleased and semi-hopeful expression on his face.

"Christian," Elliot said in a warning tone.

Christian turned, eyes saying something to him that Ana couldn't see. "I'll meet you two in the car. Do you mind waiting?"

Elliot opened his mouth but Grace cut in first, putting her hand on his arm and squeezing. She gave Christian and Ana a reassuring smile. "We don't mind at all, Christian. Take your time. Elliot and I were just going to grab a coffee from that new café I saw across the street. It was good to see you again, Ana."

"You too." Ana watched the two of them walk away. She was a bit floored with Elliot's reaction, but shouldn't have expected more. She wondered what Christian had told them about not being in a relationship anymore. The irony of their situation was humorous in a messed up way. The show they were putting on for his parents became their reality without either one of them being aware.

"I'm sorry for showing up like this," Ana said, glancing up at Christian apologetically.

"Let's talk in my office." Christian lead them to the elevator that only stopped at the executive floors, his hand on her lower back.

Ana relished the warmth that radiated from Christian's palm. It had been only ten days since she walked out of his apartment but already it felt like years since the last time she was near him, let alone felt him against her. It didn't stop her from pulling away from Christian when they stepped into the elevator. She couldn't let herself fall back into old habits.

Christian frowned as she moved, but didn't say anything. "It's really good to see you, Ana."

"It's good to see you too." Ana offered him a small smile.

She didn't say anything else until the elevator arrived and Christian ushered her into his office. They both took a seat in the same places they had that fateful day. She knew Christian was thinking the same thing from the way he caressed the arm rest with a warm smile.

"How've you been?" Christian asked.

Ana licked her lips, Christian's eyes following the motion and she froze, closing her mouth before she could completely bite her them. It was an unconscious habit he made her entirely too aware of. "I've been good. But I'm here to ask you that."

What looked like disappointment flashed across Christian's face before disappearing. "You're not here… to get back together?"

Ana looked away sharply. "Nothing's changed, Christian. I—that's not why I'm here."

"Then why are you here?" he asked in a more neutral tone.

"I wanted to check on you after the way that we left things."

Christian scoffed quietly, drawing Ana's eyes back to his face. She looked at him anew, this time taking in the stress lines that hid in the corner of his eyes and the rigid way he held his shoulders. She pressed her lips together, wanting to apologize, but knowing she had nothing to apologize for.

"I still stand by what I said. We can't be together." Christian flinched minutely. Ana powered on. "But I realize that leaving when I did was probably not the best."

Understanding appeared in Christian's eyes. "No, Ana. No." He moved forward and clasped their hands together, seating himself next to her but still leaving plenty of space between the two of them. "I don't want you to feel any pressure for my fucked up-ness."

"It's not your fucked up-ness," Ana said, pulling her hands away and running them through her hair, a habit she had apparently picked up from Christian. "That's not what this is about."

"No, I know what this is about," Christian reassured with a warm smile. "I know what you're trying to do and while I appreciate it, you don't need to worry."

This time Ana couldn't stop herself from biting her lip. "What do you mean?"

"You think I blame myself for the breakup because I'm a sadist and not because I have some serious healing I need to do on my own and you needed to make sure I knew that. That you deserve someone who can love you fully and healthily, something I'm not capable of right now, if ever."

Ana blinked, opening and closing her mouth. She had spent the whole week debating with herself if she needed to go back over and make sure that Christian knew why she left. She thought she had been clear but after a few hours at home to stew over her words, she wasn't positive anymore. If it had been any other time Ana wouldn't have worried but a lot came to light that night and she couldn't let herself be responsible for Christian backsliding more than she thought was possible.

"I don't blame myself, at least not for those reasons," Christian continued before Ana had time to formulate a response, "and even if I did, it's not your responsibility to make sure I don't."

"It might not have to but it doesn't stop me from worrying and needing to make sure you're not."

"You are too good Anastasia and I'm so grateful I got to meet you." Christian reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind her ears, his fingers trailing over her jaw as he dropped his hand. "I miss you," he said softly.

"Christian…." Ana moved closer to the edge of the seat, unsure if she should leave. If he wasn't blaming himself, then there was no point for her to be there. But she couldn't get her legs to straighten and push her away from the couch. She didn't know when she'd next see Christian and wanted to be with him as long as possible. Wanted to make sure when she left, she didn't have to worry about him.

"You were right," he said suddenly.

"What do you mean?" Ana asked, fingering the leather underneath her.

"Everything you said. I know you didn't leave because of me. I might have thought it at first, but so much is happening and it all started with you. Because of you." Ana frowned in confusion and Christian carried on before Ana could voice it. "You saw my mother and brother?"

Ana nodded slowly.

"They're here because…they're here because I told them the truth."

"About us?" That might explain Elliot's cold reaction to her, but she would've expected worse from Grace, who'd been just as kind as usual.

"No. Well, yes. Elliot knows everything about us and…." He met Ana's gaze head on, full of determination unlike any Ana had ever seen in him before. "I told them about Elena."

The floor dropped out from underneath her. "You…you what? You told them?"

Christian nodded, wringing his hands in his lap in an uncharacteristic display of nerves. "I did."

Ana gaped, unsure what to say, Christian sitting patiently, seemingly in no rush to hurry the conversation along. Ana sank back into her chair. "That's… Christian, that's fantastic." A slow smile grew on her face, and she couldn't stop herself from throwing herself at Christian who met her half way. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tight, burying her face into his neck. He flinched slightly and Ana moved to pull away only to be stopped by Christian's arms tightening around her. Ana tucked herself even tighter into his chest. "I'm so proud of you."

Truer words had never been spoken. Everything she'd said that night was true. She had seen all the pain and torture Christian had been put through and while she knew he needed help, something like this happening had never occurred to her.

"It's all because of you," Christian whispered.

"No," Ana refuted, pulling away just enough so that she could look Christian in the eye. "This is all because of you. _You_." She wanted to shake him by the shoulders and shout it from the rooftop until she was certain she had gotten it through his thick skull. Christian might be the most confident man she knew but it didn't change the opinion he held of himself. "Me being here…and leaving, might have been part of the catalyst, but you let me into your life. We met, but you never had to pursue. You wanted something different so when I came into your life, you took action. That was all you. I would've been more than happy to leave after that interview with a fantastic story, but you're the one who pursued me. You're the one who decided to tell your family the truth and that's so… _brave_."

The word brave in itself wasn't close enough to describe what it meant for Christian to finally tell his family. Telling her was tough, but despite everything, she was an outsider. Telling her was nothing in the long run. But to tell his family, the people that had been with him from the very beginning…that was completely different, and based on the way Christian clung tighter to her, she knew he agreed.

Eventually they pulled apart, finding their own spots on the couch again. "What's going to happen now?" she asked.

Christian exhaled slowly, taking each breath to collect himself. "Elena has been arrested."

"That's great news, Christian."

He smiled. It was small and full of pain but still genuine. "I'm not happy yet, but I know I'm going to be."

Ana laughed a wet and watery laugh, her eyes burning but she did everything she could to keep the tears from overflowing. She pressed her hand to her lips. "I'm really happy for you, Christian."

"I… I am too." He looked out the window. His features were soft and relaxed, his expression open in a way Ana had never seen before. "Things are really rough. My parents were really upset and I've been seeing my therapist a lot to help with that. I think I'm finally starting to understand that it's not my fault these things happened to me but yeah, it's rough." He ran his hands through his hair. "I'm glad I told them, but man do I hate that this is what I had to tell them."

"But things are working out?" Ana asked tentatively.

"Yes. Me and my family are working through it. I don't know what's going to come out with Elena. My father's doing everything he can to make sure that nothing sensitive is leaked to the public but these things have a way of getting out there."

"And if it does?"

"I'll cross that bridge when we get there."

"I'm glad this happened."

Christian's eyes flicked to hers, amusement dancing in them. "What? That we broke up?"

She snorted. "Of course not. That's been painful for me too, Christian, just in a different way. I was the one emotionally invested."

"No, Ana. No." Christian grasped her hands between the two of them. "I might've been more invested than I let on."

Ana barked out a laugh. "I never would've guessed."

Christian gave a wry smile. "How've you been?" He pulled her hand into his lap and she let him, savoring the feel of his hands within her own.

"I've been okay."

"Not regretting breaking up with me, are you?"

"No, God. Of course not."

"Don't answer that question too fast, you'll give me a complex."

The two of them shared a laugh. Ana leaned into Christian, turning her hands so their fingers linked. "It was the right choice."

"Yeah," Christian answered softly. "It was."

And as painful as his words were, Ana couldn't help but embrace them because they told her that it was all worth it and even if they didn't share their future together, Christian would have a good one, just as she knew she would too.

"So what's going to happen now?" Ana asked.

Christian squeezed her hand. "I can't be friends with you, Ana. I'm always going to want more."

"Same here." It was her own truth that she had to come to accept. She kept thinking she was going to be fine accepting whatever he could offer her but that wasn't true.

Neither one of them said anything else about their relationship. They sat together for the next hour, making idle conversation until Christian's phone started ringing with Elliot's name flashing across the screen.

They traveled to the ground floor, the elevator filled with an unnamed emotion, but a soft one. One that spoke of how far the two of them had come since the first time they shared an elevator.

Ana exited on the ground floor, Christian staying behind to continue on to the parking garage.

His hands jumped out and caught the door from sliding all the way shut. He stared at Ana. She smiled and leaned in, brushing her lips across his. She stroked his cheek.

Christian's eyes were soft as he watched her. "Ms. Steele."

"Mr. Grey."

They stepped back and the elevator doors closed, shutting them off from each other.

* * *

 **the end. ha! Nah, that would be so mean especially after how long I've been gone.**


	20. Epilogue

Epilogue

~ Five Years Later ~

The road to marriage for Christian and Ana had not been easy but neither one would change a single thing that had happened to get them there.

Christian watched as his beautiful bride to be walked down the aisle towards him in a white gown he never thought he'd see her in.

Two years without Ana. It hadn't been easy to let her walk away that fateful day half a decade ago but he'd known then that if he chased after her, he'd never get to keep her. He hadn't known it then, but the two of them needed to grow separately before they could even begin thinking of growing together. Christian especially.

Life had been rough in the first few months after the gala. He'd done everything he could to keep the situation under wraps but it hadn't meant to be. Elena's arrest had made headlines and soon the stories started following with other young men coming forward, beyond the few names that had been discovered in her own home. Christian felt like even more of an idiot not to have realized he wasn't the only one she had done these things too.

But with all of their words out in the open and it being well known his own relationship with Elena, Christian's name had been dragged into it too. He'd disappeared from the private eye, hardly being seen except for the rare times that they caught a glimpse of him stepping in to or out of his car.

Things had slowly trickled back to normal in the weeks and months that passed as the news moved on to other stories. They were blown up once again when Elena's trial came around, but only for a hot second Christian was safely able to avoid by taking a well-timed vacation with his family. A vacation everyone had been incredibly pleased with.

His own family's reaction had not been something Christian accounted for. Elena's manipulations had kept him from ever being able to clearly think about how his family would react and it had certainly been eye opening. It hadn't only been Christian who was going to therapy by the end of his first month but both of his parents, individually and together, even with Christian and the rest of his siblings at times. It had been tough but incredibly necessary.

The biggest thing they needed to overcome was coming to the realization and acceptance that Elena was the villain. Christian had hated seeing the way the guilt was eating his parents alive. Knowing they had obliviously let that woman get their clutches on their middle child. They had blamed themselves for Christian not being assured enough about his place in the family to push her words to the side and know the truth.

That simple belief had been the biggest thing they all attacked during their therapy sessions and one that had been eye opening to Christian. He'd seen how easy it was for them to twist everything so that it seemed like it was entirely their fault and it had been _logical_. That was the scary part. To see how easy it was that it made sense that they were at fault, and the biggest factors in Elena's success. And it was exactly what Christian had been doing to himself.

It was at that moment that Christian had finally started making true progress within himself. If they let the guilt eat them alive they would be letting Elena win.

Christian had needed to learn how to be an individual, something he never thought he'd need. He had to learn the difference between being isolated and being independent. Learn how to rely and trust friends and family, no crutch of Elena or women he could delude himself into thinking gave him what he needed because it was only on a physical level. For him, it had been about learning to let others in. First his family and then friends, and maybe one day, someone more.

The irony was, the day he'd accepted that the woman he shared his life with wasn't going to be Anastasia was the day he met Ana again.

Their first meeting had been slow and stunted in a way it had never been with them before. The possibilities had been endless but neither one of them knew how to move forward, if the other wanted to, or if they should.

They'd departed shortly after their initial run in with an awkward hug goodbye and no promises to reconnect made between them only for Ana to call him an hour later and ask him to meet her at a local café.

Things had progressed from there in a slow manner that Christian had savored. They would meet once every other week or so at a café and catch up. First it had been only an hour. Then two. Then they were staying until closing time and meeting so often that the baristas had their orders on the counter and rung up before they even got to the cash register.

It took Christian three months to ask Ana on a date. Another two for Ana to invite him home. Another month before she stayed the night.

And every moment in between they spent it talking. Talking about the weather and what their favorite color was.

They'd spoken about the man Ana had dated for over six months and who she'd always remember fondly.

He was the first man she'd consciously fallen in love with and the first she'd fallen out of love with. It was because of him she'd realized he wasn't the first man she ever loved but he would always hold a special place in her heart for showing her how she could love and how much she was capable of giving and deserved to be given in return. Their plans for the future didn't line up, but it didn't mean that it had been a bad relationship.

They'd talked about all the places in the world they wanted to visit together and the annoying thing Elliot had done that past weekend or what Ana's father had been up to recently. Christian had never talked so much in his life. He hadn't known it was possible to be so close to someone. They'd discussed what they wanted for their future. How many kids they wanted and where they would live.

Ana stepped up beside Christian, her hand sliding into his where it belonged.

"I love you," Christian said, eyes dancing with unshed tears.

Ana swallowed the lump in her throat. "I love you."

The End

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 **OMG u guys I finally did it! I cannot believe how long it's been and that there are still people reading and sending me messages asking about it and I cannot apologize enough, but here it is! And I just finished it up instead of tormenting you with that last chapter. I really liked it tho, and I always loved that scene in the movie where the elevators door close between them. loved.**

 **But yeah, wow, holy cow this is done. Def a bit nervous to hear about your feelings on this. Dk who's even still reading this and kicking myself a bit on how long it's been cuz I know I'll have lost some readers who won't even remember this fic and won't want to go back an re-read it, trying to remember it. But I still did it cuz it seriously needed to get done.**

 **On the real world side of things I have self-published two books since I last posted here! Which is really cool to think about. I'm working on my next one now but hadn't been writing much the past month and part of getting back in was just finishing up this fic as a way to wet my feet again in the writing world. If you guys would like to check out what I've been working on, you can find the link through one of my social media pages.**

 **Instagram: rebeccaegan007**

 **Twitter: rebeccaegan007**

 **Facebook: rebeccaegan007**

* * *

Seriously tho guys. Thank you to all the readers that took the time to read this, it means the world to me and all your comments have been amazing. I hope you're happy with how I ended things and that it doesn't feel too rushed. If you have any questions, leave them in the comments and I'll do my best to get back to them!

And before I forget! The title. I loved some of your guys comments about it. The title is from my favorite Mamma Mia song 'Slipping Through My Fingers'. I just love that song so much. It makes me tear up every time I hear it.


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